


(ACT 8) ACT 3: Carry Our Intentions Through The Wind

by calumTraveler



Series: Stargate: Alternia [18]
Category: Hiveswap, Homestuck, Myst Series, Power Rangers, Stargate Atlantis, 魔進戦隊キラメイジャー | Mashin Sentai Kiramager
Genre: Building damage, Chapter Specific Content Warnings in Chapter Notes, Don't copy to another site., Explosions, Fighting a giant monster at small scale, Frequent Picture linkage and embedding, Ground Battles, Megazord battles, Meta talk, Moderate Music Linkage, Multi, Past Lives, Power Rangers levels of Violence, Reincarnation, Stargate typical levels of violence, The Homestuck Epilogues, Wraith (Stargate), Wraith Feeding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:03:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 23
Words: 101,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27419242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calumTraveler/pseuds/calumTraveler
Summary: The Kanaema Stones seem like such an afterthought in the immediate aftermath of Enter's Gambit. But soon enough, the Kiramagers will need to double down and find the stones, if only to keep them out of Garuza and Lothor's hands.Someone keeps turning up the heat, threatening to burn up the universe all around them, and it'll be all the Power Rangers can do to put the fire out before the flames burn everything to the ground. Sooner or later, someone is going to break.
Series: Stargate: Alternia [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/836265
Comments: 86
Kudos: 4





	1. SGA:06X17: Burn You Up, Burn You Down (Part 2)

**Author's Note:**

> You guys know the drill by now. If you're coming into this now as a new reader I can suggest a few proper jumping on points:  
> 1: Right at the Beginning if you're here for Stargate and Homestuck.  
> ....That's over 2 million words of fic to read. I wouldn't recommend it unless you've got a lot of free time on hand.  
> 2: The Start of the Act 8s, if you're just here for the Kiramager/Power Rangers stuff. It might be a bit more confusing jumping right in with the mythology references to previous acts, but anything important that needs to be covered has major effort made to have it explained.
> 
> But seriously you're gonna be jumping into the middle of an ongoing fight here. *stares seriously at audience members* If you're not caught up on AT LEAST the last two acts things are going to be VERY confusing.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Act 8, Act 3. An Unlikely alliance forms to stop Enter from accomplishing his awful deeds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Enemy/Ranger Team up.  
> Daniel Jackson.  
> Explosions.  
> Major Villain Character Death.  
> Cruel and unusual torture.  
> Forced Body Swap.  
> Roll Calling During a Battle.  
> Dismemberment via a chainsaw.

**EARTH DATE: NOVEMBER 19TH, 2012.**   
  
[Noise pierced the Darkness-](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3_c9djkr08)

_wom wom BAH._  
  
 _wom wom TAH._  
  
 _wom wom_  
  
Light pierced through the darkness as a parking garage was demolished via Gigant Driller's foot kicking through it in an effort to get at the Missile headed Mecha.  
  
"AHAHA!" It tanked it with a force field, and then threw a punch that knocked Gigant Driller backwards. "Fat chance, Pillsbury drillboy!"  
  
Meanwhile, Kiramagein struggled with the orange hued Evaangelion that was fighting against them.  
  
As they fight the Evangelion's throat keeps uttering those same sounds.  
  
 _wom wom_  
  
 _wom wom_  
  
Kiramagein's sword clashed against the Eva's hand-projected shield, energy ground against crystalline sword--   
  
"TAKE THIZ!" And then Mazellan fired off from behind- attacking the Evangelion's blind spot.  
  
 _wom wom_ It cried out. _wom wom._  
  
It turned on Mazellan, and completley missed the roll of glitter rods Carry had brought in.  
  
 _ **WOM WOM** _it fell over onto a building, and quickly began righting itself.  
  
"Have a Nice Trip!" Carry shouted, wheeling away before it could retaliate.  
  
[0:42]  
  
Meanwhile, Driller threw punches and kicks at the Missile Bot, who laughed, blocking every strike with force fields. "You can't stop me! Hahah!"  
  
"Just stay still and let me break your shields!" Harry shouted.   
  
"NO WAY!" It countered.  
  


* * *

  
Up in orbit on the Beltus, Okurii Leijon watched events unfold with a scowl. "We have to find a way to get through those shields and fast. That thing is a walking teleportation beacon!"  
  
Sure enough, outgoing teleportation bursts were still happening. How many more Enemy Megazords was this thing going to launch before it went down??  
  
They had to do something or else...  
  
"Ma'am!" Zebede suddenly shouted. "Urgent transmission from Atlantis!"  
  


* * *

  
Kiramagein and Driller staggered backwards from the two enemy mechas, the small army of weapon Mashin gathered at their feet as they prepared for a final stand...  
  
And then a train whistle blew like a roar.  
  
Everyone turned upwards, and watched as Smog Jouki wheeled into view, and transformed atop a nearby skyscraper.  
  
"Oh, great," Tomo lamented. "Just what we needed!"  
  
"Indeed, Kiramagers," Garuza announced. "This is indeed, just what we all need." He didn't sound happy about it either.

* * *

[ _**o < \--- STARGATE: ATLANTIS --- >o** _ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0K2bRdtGlg)

* * *

Several minutes earlier, Garuza huffed as he gazed out at the torn up battlefield of Evangelion corpses and shattered Monstone Cores. Smog Jouki gazed upon the field of remains with gleaming eyes, absorbing the fragments of Jamental from the various shattered Monstones...  
  
A hologram screen appeared in the corner of Jouki's cockpit, and Garuza looked in surprise as Gilgamesh's face appeared there.  
  
 _"Garuza, we're detecting yet more still teleportation events from Earth C,"_ Gilgamesh snarled- Wraith like in appearance and mannerisms. ** _"GO NOW. Do what you must. Team up with the Kiramagers if you have to. JUST. DESTROY. THAT. TELEPORTER."_**  
  
And then he hung up without giving Garuza room to argue.  
  


* * *

  
Garuza gazed down at the Kiramagers right then and there with a certain annoyance and anxiety.  
  
"I have been ordered to work with you to defeat these monsters," Garuza said. "Enter's assault ravages all our worlds, including the Earth we control. These monsters must be stopped."  
  
"HEY!" Missile bot yelled. "Who're you calling a monster, you Kaiju!?"  
  
"BURN BLACKER!" Garuza roared- and Jouki unleashed a burst of purple flames down upon the two enemy mechs- who threw up their shields to block it. "Kiramagers! We won't have long. We combine now, or we don't win at all."  
  
"I can't keep fighting like this anyways," Jetta said. "I'm feeling woozy again."  
  
"Jetta," Fiya started, "Think you can manage Sky Mage instead?"  
  
"Probably, worth a try anyways," Jetta answered.  
  
"Then let's do it," Atsuya said. "Harley, take Express!"  
  
"Right," Harley nodded, tapping her morpher. "Esprez, Drybe!"  
  
"Garuza." Atsuya looked up to Garuza, even as Heliko and Jetta removed from Kiramagein to form Sky Mage. "No funny business."  
  
"As long as you don't try to steal Jouki from me after, I have no objections," Garuza said. "But our truce ends the moment Enter meets his end."  
  
"Deal," Atsuya nodded.  
  


* * *

  
Inside the Missile Bot, Ridley paused at a hologram screen, showing the outside battle as Mashin Express and Smog Jouki combined together. "Oh you've GOT to be KIDDING me!"  
  
"What is it now?" The Red Ranger asked.  
  
"Garuza's teaming up with the Kiramagers!" Ridley answered.  
  
"Weird, but whatever! Let's find the power core generating that shield, and destroy it," The Red Ranger said.  
  
"Fine!" Ridley nodded.

* * *

[ **> [S] ROLL CALL** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxB9RPI2b74)

"Let's do it, everyone!" Atsuya called out. "Inspiration Sparkling! KIRAMEI RED!"  
  
"Guided Shooting!" Tomo called out, pointing a finger-gun out the window. "KIRAMEI YELLOW!"  
  
"Rush Lightning!" Harley called out. "KIRAMEI GREEN!"  
  
"Sharpened Unstoppable!" Equius called out- leveling his right arm like a sword. "KIRAMEI BLUE!"  
  
"Deft Incredible!" Nepeta concluded the Ranger's call. "KIRAMEI PINK!"  
  
"FLYING HIGH! THE MAGE OF THE HEAVENS!" Heliko and Jetta shouted as Sky Mage spun through the air, striking a pose. ** __"SKY MAGE!"__**  
  
"STRONGER THAN DIAMONDS! THE MAGE OF THE GROUND!" Fiya, Shovellow, and Mahha called out as Land Mage struck its pose next. _**_"LAND MAGE!"_**_  
  
"CLEAN IT ALL!" Rolland shouted. "MASHIN ROLLAND!"  
  
"FLIPPING FLAPJACKS!" Lifton added with glee. "MASHIN LIFTON!"  
  
"THE PROTECTING STAR!" Carry finished her trio. "MASHIN CARRY!"  
  
"THE MACH SPEED TITAN!" Esprez shouted as Ghost Express took its pose. "GHOST EXPRESS!"  
  
"BUSTING MAKES ME FEEL GOOD!" Duston shouted with a twirl around in the road. "MASHIN DUSTON, DUS!"  
  
"ZHAKEN! NOT ZTIRRED!!" Mazellan added, whrilling his mixer drum. "MAZHIN MAZELLAN!"  
  
"PIERCING SHINING! KIRAMEI SILVER!" Harry concluded the individual calls. _**_"GIGANT DRILLER!"_**_  
  
 _ **"ARRIVING IN A FLASH!"**_ The core five Kiramagers called out from their various Mecha.   
  
_**"DISPATCHING EVIL WITH A BLAST!"** _The Shovellow Squad cried out.  
  
 **"MASHIN SENTAI!"** Harry called out as all of them struck a group pose, and then--  
  


_**"KIRAMAGER!"** _

All of them shouted, brilliant explosions of colorful smoke bursting free from a ruined building behind them.  
  
"What a showy explosion," Garuza remarked. "I hope you were watching, Enter, because this is the end of your monster army."  
  
"Wh-What the hell's with all the pyrotechnics all of a sudden?" The Missile Monster asked, glancing around between everyone.  
  
"Let's go, everyone!" Atsuya tapped his morpher.   
  
_**_"MASHIN GATTAI!"_**_  
  
The Shovellow Squad broke formation, combining with whoever was available. Lifton and Carry went to Land Mage, and Mazellan, Duston, and Rolland went to Gigant Driller.  
  
 ** __"MASHIN SCRAMBLE!"__**  
  
"MASHIN READY?" Fiya called out.  
  
"GO!" They shouted as one, and charged forwards.

* * *

"Okay, so we've got the new piercing effect applied to our weapons and zords," Miko said as the Core Mystics briefly regathered inside of Catherine to consolidate their plans. "We're going to need to split up to cover ground to help the other Rangers take out enemy zords as they show up."  
  
The five of them didn't notice Zahra Fazal watching them from around a corner, not just yet.  
  
"Maddie's helping out on the Genii homeworld in Pegasus," Miko continued. "Hector, take the team and go help her out. I'll go with Catastros to whatever other worlds in Pegasus need help and don't have us yet."  
  
"You can't just go alone," Fargo protested. "What if you get overwhelmed! You'll need back up!"  
  
"She won't be going alone!" Zahra decided, entering then. "I'll go with you, Miko!"  
  
"But... you're not a ranger?" Rose pointed out the obvious.  
  
"Not yet," Serara said, then turned to Miko, a strange look of understanding gleaming in her eyes. "Go back to Atlantis, and raid Doctor Kae's lab." She took out a piece of paper, and sketched out a number. "I... May or may not have been planning to take the Mercury Ranger Zords for a joy ride at some point? Either way, here's the vault code for where the Mercury Morpher's hidden."  
  
Miko gazed at the paper as Serara handed it to her, then looked to Zahra, and said, "I sure hope you like silver and orange, Zahra!"

* * *

"BANG!" Rolland smashed into the forceshield of the Missile Bot- straining the shield enough that the incoming "BURN BLACKER!!" From Jouki's maw burst through the shield, shattering it, and allow Mazellen to fire off at the Missile bot.  
  
"NOT FAIR!" He shouted- summoning in another one of the crimson Evangelions armed with the sniper rifles to take the double team attack that followed that opening sequence.  
  
"Cheater!" Garuza shouted, "Take your hits like the machine you are!"  
  
"Even Robots can have a self preservation instinct!" The Missile Bot shouted as it ran away, deeper into the city. "And mine is telling me to stay alive so I can keep spawning Evangelions across the UNIVERSEEEEE!"  
  
"What a brat, Dus!" Duston remarked as the Crimson Evangelion's shield lowered and it raised its sniper rif--  
  
 _ **"CHAINSAAAAAW!"** _Garuza roared- and Ghost Express rocketed forwards- chainsaw arm revving to full speed and cutting clean through the forcefield with ease.  
And not just the force field, but the Crimson Evangelion's Right arm, and left hand, and middle torso.  
  
The thing fell into pieces and exploded dramatically between Ghost Express and Gigant Driller.  
  
"Yikes," Harry said. "Remind me not to let Garuza steal Express from us."  
  
"Reminder created," Mazellan said flatly.  
  
And then a beeping sound caught Harry's attention. "Yeah?" He asked aloud- answering the communication request.  
  
"Harry, we're downloading new battle techniques to   
  


* * *

  
_**"PROTEEEEEEEEECT!"**_ Carry shouted- throwing up a force field against the force field the orange Evangelion was leveraging against Land Mage.  
  
It snarled-- _wom wom_ \-- and pushed against the other mecha hard and fast---  
  
And then Sky Mage landed on the Eva's back- gripped at the armor along its neck, and pulled at something fragile, revealing a tender flesh made of wires and pipes and pistons beneath.  
  
"TAKE THIS!" Heliko shouted, shoving Sky Mage's blaster hands into the exposed area and firing away.  
  
 ** _WOM WOOOOM!_ **The Evangelion's chest armor burst apart- much to everyone's surprise.   
  
The crystal gemstone in its chest brust forth a moment later- transforming into a freaking giant sized Monstone of orange color.  
  
"WAH!" Heliko shouted as Sky Mage took to the air to avoid being taken down with the collapsing shell of the Evangelion. "A Monstone!!"  
  
"Well that explains a lot!" Shovellow snapped Carry out to block the Monstone's next punching attack.  
  


* * *

  
In his backup base, Enter gazed at a staticky screen depicting the battle the Kiramagers were involved in. "So, Garuza decided to get involved, did he?"  
  
Iyo shouted something, though it was illegible through the cloth gag he'd tied around her mouth.   
  
Enter ignored her, focusing on the screen. "Such an annoying turn of events. Why would you go and work with the Kiramagers, Garuza? Why why why...?"  
  


* * *

  
Miko opened the safe, and gazed at the Mercury Morpher. "Hello, Shiny!" She picked it up, and turned to present it to Zahra. "Zahra! I present to you the Mercury Morpher! Use it to become the Overdrive's sixth ranger and **_Blah BlAh BLAH!!!_** " Her tone of voice rose to a shout: **_"DO YOU VOW TO BEAT UP MONSTERS WITH A SUPER AWESOME ZORD!?"_**  
  
Zahra took the morpher, strapped it to her wrist with a firm nod, and then declared, "Let's Party!!"  
  


* * *

  
  
Ridley impossibly sneezed for no apparent reason that she could deduce, and scowled beneath her helmet.   
  
_'Damn it, someone else took the Morpher, didn't they?'_  
  


* * *

  
On a random world in the Pegasus Galaxy, sirens could be heard as a Crimson Evangelion turned from its mountain perch to gaze down into the threatened village below.  
  
A large firetruck dove into view, flanked on either side by remote control zords- one a chaser type car, and the other a speedy ambulance. Each was marked with a number, 11, 12, and 13.  
  
And then adding to the incongruity- a large, black zord in the shape of a horse came up into view, galloping alongside the Overdrive Zords. Riding that horse zord- Catastros- was Miko's crimson titan form.  
  
The Evangelion lined up a sniper shot with its blaster rifle...  
  
And then immediately got whacked on the head by a giant flying phoenix bird that rammed into it from the side- throwing its aim off and making the shot fly off far, far, far, into the upper atmosphere.  
  
A moment later, Zords were combining, and the Evangelion was in for a very short encounter indeed.  
  


* * *

  
"Oh. That's a lot of glowing crystal," Ridley said, taking off her helmet as she gazed up at the large, square, digitally green crystal suspended in the robo-droids chest.  
And when I say large? I mean almost easily as big across from the edge of one side of the chest to the other. From it, flashes of orange were forming monstones, then encasing them into Evangelion Shells before they were teleported away.  
  
It wasn't just a power source. It was a factory.  
  
"We're never going to be able to destroy this from the inside," Ridley realized, gazing around at the exterior rib cage. Armor plates were everywhere, armor, armor, armor... bolts?  
  
Bolts!  
  
Ridley turned to her surviving teammates and jabbed a thumb at the far wall. "Let's cut the bolt at the head and give those Rangers out there an opening they can't miss."  
  


* * *

  
Buster Herekles and Buster King went tumbling to the ground as their latest attacks were rebuffed by an impossibly strong forcefield.  
  
"Damn it, what now?" Youko asked.  
  
That's when their savior arrived in the form of an incoming transmission.  
  
 _"Rangers,"_ Rodney Mckay's face appeared on a screen. _"We're transmitting you new attack patterns. Combine your zords into their Ultrazord Formation, and use the 'Emission Slash' attack with the profile 'Rule Break' active!"_  
  
"Roger that, Atlantis," Hiromu replied.   
  
"Data transmission received," Ryujii acknowledged.  
  
"Form Great Go-Buster!" J announced.  
  
 _ **"TOKUMEI GATTAI!"**_ the five rangers called out.  
  


* * *

  
Watching from his base, Enter scoffed. "Great Go-Buster won't do anything to that particular Megazord."  
  
The Go-Busters' five piece Ultrazord formed, readying its staff-spear weapon.   
  
"Seriously, that's not going to do anything," Enter smirked.  
  
 ** _"RULE BREAK! EMISSION SLASH!"_ **Energy coated the spear tip- but it wasn't the usual whirling vortex of color Enter had seen many a time before, or was expecting this time, for that matter.  
  
And then the Great Go-Buster machine stabbed forwards with a spear rippling with power that cut through entirely the resulting forceshield- and armor- and core- of the enemy Megazord.  
  
Enter's jaw slackened as he watched the robot explode, and the machine turned around, back to it as the fires died out.  
  
Then, the Megazord took to the air- teleporting away.  
  
"What." Enter quickly tapped at controls on the nearest keyboard. "How how how did they do that? Where are they? What. What What What??? How the-?"  
  
And thus, Enter saw that his fleet of Evangelions were being dismantled at a rapid pace. How had they found a way past the shielding? It didn't- No, this couldn't --  
  
 _ **THEY WERE CHEATING!**_  
  
Overdrive's Ultrazord phoenix blasted more Evangelions. The ToQGers destroyed the Wargreymon and Metalgarurumon megazords. The- The- The Mystics were fighting on three fronts, blowing up enemy mechas left and right.  
  
There was even a new Overdrive Megazord Enter had never seen before that was blasting away with water cannons- What kind of name was 'Flashpoint' for a Megazord anyways??- and oh, OH. OH NO. 

Enter slammed his clenched fist into the nearest flat surface- the computer screen.   
  
"DAMN IT ALL!" He shouted.  
  
And despite the rag muzzling her, Iyo couldn't help but to laugh.  
  
However, because of this, Enter failed to see what was about to happen next.

* * *

"THUNDER BLASTER!"  
  
"NINJA SWORD!"  
  
Explosions rocked the inside of the Missile Droid's chest cavity- blowing apart bolt after bolt, leaving only a few left in place.  
  


* * *

  
"Ooof-" The robot reached up for its chest. "I'm feeling a little heartburn! Maybe some indegestion!"  
  
He turned to leave somewhere- only for Ghost Express to appear before him.  
  
"Uhoh!"  
  
He turned- Gigant Driller stood the way he'd come.  
  
 _"Uhhhohhh!"_  
  
He turned a third way, Land Mage stood there, eyes gleaming.  
  
"OH COME ON!" he turned towards the only option left available, and Sky Mage was hovering there.  
  
"Not happening, buster!" Heliko shouted.  
  
And then Ghost Express rocketed forwards, punching with Jouki's Maw.  
  
The Missile Bot threw up a forcefield- difflecting Jouki's face off to the side.  
  
Of course, the strain on the energy core coupled with a sudden burst of explosions inside caused the Missile Bot's chest plating to literally explode off of him a moment later.  
  
"WAGH!" He shouted staggering backwards against a building- and nobody saw the Ninja Storm Ranger leaping out of the Megazord, and out into the city, where they vanished into the shadows.  
  
"What was that?!" Harley shouted, peering out of Express.  
  
"No clue," Mahha replied, "but it's exposed a weakness!"  
  
"A giant green gemstone?" Atsuya asked at the same time Nepeta asked, "A Kiramei Stone!?"  
  
"No," Garuza said, "that is a manufacturing sized Monstone, waiting to birth itself into existence." He gripped the wheel of Jouki, and snarled. "Damn that Enter! We have to destroy it before it can become a bigger problem!"  
  
"Nope Nope Nope!" The Missile Bot threw up a polyhedral dome of a forcefield around it- blocking attacks from Ghost Express and the Mages as it covered its exposed chest. "Pay no attention to the gemstone behind the armor!!"  
  
"I've got just the trick then," Harry said, dismissing the armament Mashins from Gigant Driller.   
  
"Overpowered Finisher!" He leaped into the air, throwing his drill hand into the air- above him.   
  
_**"GIGANT!"**_ Golden energy formed around that drill, and expanded into an even MORE giant size.  
  
 _ **"DRILLER!"** _The drills on his feet did the same.  
  
 _ **"TRIPLE BREAKER KIIIIIIIIICK!"** _He shouted as those drills of energy suddenly burst forth with golden light, propelling Gigant Driller forwards at rocket speeds.  
  
 _ **SPIKOOOOOOOOOOM!**_  
  
"WAIT!" The Missile Bot looked up, and made the mistake of trying to reinforce the shields before Gigant Driller's finishing move.   
  
The sudden reshuffling of the forcefield left him exposed from all sides.  
  
"SKY MAGE BLAST!" Nepeta and Equius called out.  
  
"BURN BLASTER!" Harley and Esprez shouted out.  
  
"LIFTON PUNCTURE!" Tomo and Atsuya roared.  
  
The three attacks whamed into the Missile Bot's exposed sides as the Drills easily tore through the reinforced shield, and then plowed further through the Missile Bot's chest mounted gemstone.  
  
The thing less cracked, and more was pulverized into green dust that flew everywhere as Driller skid to a stop on the opposite side of the robot- who in his dying breath, complete with a giant hole in his chest, exclaimed--  
  
"I thought I was The Bomb of the Party, but instead _I just Bombed Out!"_  
  
\--And then fell onto his back and exploded.  
  
 _ **_"CHECKMAGE!"_**_  
  


* * *

  
Lothor sighed in relief as he watched reports of new Evangelions on Earth go down. "Well. That's one problem dealth with."  
  


* * *

  
Keiko Ayano sighed in relief as she watched reports of new monsters showing up across the universe began to go down. "Oh Thank God." She hit the radio, and reported, "Rodney, John, the monster attacks are finally going down."

* * *

Down in the zord bay, John and Rodney highfived over a job well done.  
  
Sometimes, it really did come down to the technicians to save the day by giving the heroes the tools they needed to save the day... even if AR-1's teammembers were usually the ones being those heroes.  
  


* * *

  
"Not bad for your first day," Miko appraised as she sat next to Zahra atop the shoulder of the newest Overdrive Megazord.  
  
"Thanks," Zahra said with a nod. "It was pretty fun! Though... are we going to be in trouble for the zord and morpher theft?"  
  
Almost as if on cue, Miko's Morpher chimed.  
  
"Eeehh..." Miko flipped open her Morpher, checked recent messages, and then flipped it closed. "Doctor Kae wants us back on Atlantis for a debrief later, but apparently we've got a special mission first."  
  
"A special mission?" Zahra asked.  
  
"Yeeep," Miko nodded. "Really jumping in the deep end today, aren't we?" She laughed, no doubt grinning beneath her helmet.  
  


* * *

  
Garuza and the Kiramagers stood across from eachother in the city streets just below the resting Mashin as Harry activated his morpher's projection screen.  
  
 _"Rangers,"_ Gina Kae gave them an acknowledging nod. "Garuza." She scowled slightly. _"Sorry I wasn't around for the last few battles."_  
  
"It's fine," Atsuya said. "Things got really hectic all of a sudden."  
  
"What's the news?" Equius asked, holding a snoozing Jetta in arm.   
  


* * *

  
"The Seers have just confirmed what we've feared. Enter's taken Iyo Kodera to a fall-back base," Gina said. "Whatever Enter is planning on doing, he's going to be doing it soon. The Seers are focusing everything they have towards divining his current hideout."  
  
She looked over at Okurii, who was talking with Cassandra Fraiser about something.   
  
"While the Seers are still getting a location hemmed out, however," Gina continued after a slight pause, "I've been working on something else. Reviewing the data transport logs, I observed several teleports off of Earth C directed towards a location in Pegasus. I've added that to the data set the Seers are working off of, but I think I have a hunch which world it'll be."  
  


* * *

  
"Send us the coordinates when you've got it," Harry said, sparing a glance a Garuza, who chuckled with a faint chime.   
  
_"Naturally."_ Gina nodded, then continued, _"In the mean time, I want Express to go and pick up the Overdrive, Mystic, and Buster teams. I have no doubt that Enter will be guarding his new facility heavily. We_ **cannot** _let him escape this time."_  
  
"Of that," Garzua said, "we are in agreement."  
  
There was a shared grim look between the Kiramagers, but they couldn't deny it. Enter had gone way too far this time.   
  


* * *

  
Daniel Jackson stood in the Atlantis Cafeteria, watching as people went this way or that.  
  
Usually, they gave him an odd look as they went by.  
  
Almost two weeks, and he was still getting a bit of the stink eye. What was that all about?  
  
Still, while Daniel didn't understand that much, he DID understand the chaos that had come from the last few hours. Megazord Deployments and all sorts of other crazy monster battles.  
  
He was well and clearly on the outside of the events whirling around their centerpoint. It was rather much like he was in an airplane observing a hurricane at great distance, even. But there was still a point of contention and concern.  
  
The most annoying of which was one of the people in the cafeteria looking at him right now was clearly not someone everyone else could see at all. A man whose crystaline body was vaguely transparent and light-projectiony, but only for Daniel's eyes.  
  
King Oladdin, of Crystalia.  
  
What was the look the man was giving him now? It was hard to tell. The Crystalian facial structure didn't tend to move much even when solid, and the King's expressions were even more stubbornly inflexible as an Ascended Being.  
  
It was stupidly hard to tell, and Daniel sighed. The only way he was going to get any answers out of the King was to speak to him.  
  
And so, he went to find somewhere private- a simple balcony railing somewhere near the cafeteria, but out of the way enough nobody would see them talking.  
  
The King, naturally, followed him.  
  
"Are you enjoying your life among the living once more?" The KIng asked, breaking the silence.  
  
"Eh," Daniel gave a small shrug. "Could be better. Sarah's been avoiding talking with me. Jade's pissed, John's smug, Argo's saddled me with a years worth of backlogged paperwork and projects I needed to sign off on..." He paused. "I haven't even really had a chance to sit down and talk with Harley at all. So. Yeah. Could be better, but could be worse. That's life, I guess."  
  
"Life indeed," Oladdin mused. "One day, perhaps, I may descend myself. Return to the living once more. But... not until a curse is lifted from my Family. For now, my Daughter is alive, and should the curse remain on her... I shudder to think of the implications."  
  
"What kind of curse is that?" Daniel asked.  
  
The King looked at Daniel, and said, "The Kind that I don't know how to remove."  
  


* * *

  
"You know?" Tomo said quietly as Harley cuddled up next to them in the back of Express' passenger compartment. "I think I get it when people say they really hate Mondays."  
  
Harley snorted. "Really?"   
  
"I mean-" Tomo motioned at the nearest window, and Harley glanced that way.  
  
Outside, two trains could be seen- Mashin Jouki's train form was keeping rapid pace with Express, with the Mystic Force's Solar Streak train a bit slower behind it- as they rocketed across an interdimensional rift from one part of the universe to another.  
  
The Mashin, save for Express and Mazellan, had been left behind on the Beltus to recover after the THREE large battles that had just happened today alone. That also included Harry, who was exhasuted to the point of colapse.   
  
And now here they were, hurtling towards battle number... four? Five? What even number did it matter at this point?  
  
"...Fair point," Harley winced.  
  
"Can you two keep it down? I'm trying to nap before the next fight," Equius politely reminded them, from the set of seats just below that window, lying flat on his back with a fisherman's had folded gently over his eyes to block out the light.  
  
"Sorry," Tomo apologized, and so resumed cuddling with Harley as they waited to reach their destination.   
  


* * *

  
Up in the front, in Express' cockpit, Nepeta sat at the controls while Atsuya leaned against the side of the chair, resting his head on the side of her leg as he, too, got a quick nap.  
  
"Some day, huh?" Nepeta mused quietly.  
  
"That it's been," Esprez said quietly as well.   
  
Neither needed to say anything more.  
  
Nepeta narrowed her eyes at the whirling swirl of Hyperspace before them, and knew they could be going faster. But there was time to waste while the Seers triangulated everything still. And they needed to pick up the Go-Busters, too, before heading to their next destination- the stop at the end of the rainbow, as it were.   
Enter's lair.  
  
Who knew what he was doing to Iyo at this point, or why his creepy fixation on her remained to this point, but...  
  
Nepeta could only hope they weren't going to be too late.  
  


* * *

  
Rose Egbert stood among her team, among other Ranger teams, with a small sense of dread welling up within her heart. It wasn't about the battles they were soon to face, no. It was the simple fact that the black Kiramei Stone that was hovering in the sky distantly was the herald of Garuza's presence here on a random forest world in the Pegasus Galaxy.  
  
The Go-Busters were here, the Overdrives were here, the Kiramagers were here... And her team, the Mystics, were here too.   
  
And then there's Garuza, just coldly standing off in the corner. Kind of just gazing, creepily, at them out his helmet.  
  
Not several hours ago he'd mind controlled Harry into fighting his own team.  
  
And now here he was standing along side them all, with this uneasy truce hanging over their heads.  
  
Enter had to be defeated, that was certain.  
  
But all of this?  
  
Rose narrowed her eyes.   
  
_Garuza being here was just absurd after what he pulled just a few hours ago._  
  
But given the day everyone had been having so far? Well.   
  
At any rate, June and Kanaya were welcoming their new teammate to the Overdrives, meanwhile Vrissy, Tavvy, and Sally were conversing with Atsuya about Harry- concerned about their friend.  
  
Rose looked to June, who was smiling welcomingly. Kanaya seemed only slightly disappointed that Ridley had been cut out of the loop, but if Rose knew her girlfriend well, Kanaya wasn't too upset over it. There seemed to be an undercurrent of relief, actually.   
  
Truthfully, Rose had felt Ridley wasn't a good fit for Overdrive's Sixth ranger- too much of a free spirit. Far more water-element aligned than 'Mercury.' Kanaya had not quite admitted she'd felt worry that Ridley wouldn't be able to handle the stress, even in private, but Rose felt she had a decent understanding of half-said sentences here.  
  
The point Rose Egbert was trying to get to here was that Miko's quick recuritment seemed to be paying off. That was three full teams, with only the Kiramagers down one due to how exhausted Harry had gotten. They'd be stronger, going forwards.  
  
Now if only Garuza wasn't here, spying on them.  
  
Morphers chimed, then, and were answered.  
  
Gina Kae's voice echoed out- _"Alright, everyone, we've narrowed down the location of Enter's hideout. Looks like I was right after all, and not-so-random chance has brought Enter down onto the doorstep of a certain interdimensional temple. We've now confirmed this not through the Seers, but through the fact we literally can't dial the damned Stargate."_  
  
"Ah, great," Hector lamented, grimacing. "So there goes that easy option."  
  
"But that's why we have Express," Harley chimed in. "Right?"  
  
 _"Exactly,"_ Gina said. _"And as it so happens, I chose this random meeting world as being particularly close, per the galactic starmap. It's unfortunate, but you'll have to make the leap from there."_  
  
"I think we can manage," Atsuya said, glancing at Garuza.   
  
A dark chime echoed through the air.  
  
"Let's make haste and defeat that bastard once and for all," Garuza said with unrestrained enthusiasm.  
  
 _"As much as I hate to agree with_ the mind controlling bad guy," Gina said, stressing those words in the Crystalian's direction, _"he's right. You should get moving before Enter does anything worse to Iyo Kodera than he's already done."_  
  


* * *

  
"Tsk," Enter scoffed as he began flipping switches. "So what if my Evangelions are being cleaned up and I've lost track of the worst troublemakers. So what?"  
Iyo glared at him.  
  
Enter ignored her gaze. "I mean, it's scientifically impossible that they'd deduce our location. I don't think Atlantis is even aware of this world that I sneaked out of Lord Gilgamesh's databases."  
  
Iyo continued to glare at him.  
  
Enter flipped a few switches, and a generator powered on with a hum.  
  
"And with the sheer amount of chaos I've sewn into the Universe at large means that it's entirely likely the Seers are blinded to where I really am," Enter said. "They can't predict me. Can't predict this plan."  
  
'Go on,' Iyo tried to say, 'Keep taunting Murphy while we're at it.'  
  
Of course, her words were muffled by the gag around her mouth.  
  
Enter continued to ignore her remarks- but this time he had a valid excuse- hand hovering over the final lever as a power gauge rose steadily.   
  
You see, in that moment, a crack of thunder resounded somewhere in the distance- a storm was rolling in.  
  
You see, in that moment, Enter had the deepest, most human emotion that anyone could ever have.  
  
You see, in that moment, the feeling of foreboding doom come true rang the doorbell as a courtesy for Murphy's Law before it ignored the locked door as a mere suggestion and teleported beyond it anyways.  
  
"I'm sure it's fine," Enter said to reassure himself of his own technical insulation skills.  
  
And then, Smog Jouki's train roar echoed through the air.  
  
Enter hung his head as Iyo barked out a laugh.  
  
Then, he reached out for a lever that wasn't meant to be pulled yet, and pulled it fast.  
  
Iyo's laughter cut off into a scream.  
  


* * *

  
"You know, there's been something I've been meaning to ask you," Daniel said, eyeing the spectral form of the Crystalian King that only he could see.   
  
"That's a strange thing to jump to after my last remark," King Oladdin said. "What is it?"  
  
"See, it's been bugging me ever since we were Ascended," Daniel began. "You were talking about doing things while ascended, and the Others let you get away with it. But back in that time frame they really shouldn't have. Even the Andromeda group didn't get the leeway to do anything on our plane until Anubis started wracking up trouble points like an arcade that's going out of business."   
  
Truthfully, Daniel wasn't sure where that metaphor came from, but he was rolling with it anyways.   
  
"I... what?" Oladdin asked, head tilting to the side. "I don't quite follow."  
  
"No, see, that's the point," Daniel said. "Esprez followed the rules more than you have, and that's even with you arranging for her eventual revival. The Others had strict rules for non-involvement with the lower planes because then we get situations like the Ori, or the Andromeda group. So there had to be something special about you that was keeping them from interfering with your own interference somehow. And I don't buy any of the stuff you've said to me about it, either. I didn't say anything while I was still ascended because I had more pressing concerns, but I've had an abundance of free time since I descended again and, well. It's been bugging me."  
  
"...I see," Oladdin mused for a moment. "That's quite a logical deduction, I suppose. After all this buildup, you must have one interesting question, Daniel Jackson."  
  
"Are you half-ascended like Anubis was," Daniel asked, "Or are you just able to access the Ascended Plane somehow through another means?"  
  
The King took in Daniel's question- and then he laughed.  
  


* * *

  
Towering Robots loomed out of the forest with twin flashes of green light- two of them to be precise, and to those who had studied Corinth City's history, were immediately recognizable as giant sized replicas of Venjix's top 'generals' [Shifter](https://powerrangers.fandom.com/wiki/General_Shifter) and [Crunch](https://powerrangers.fandom.com/wiki/General_Crunch).  
  
Nepeta Leijon, having been someone who studied such aforementioned history, immediately recognized them.  
  
"Oh, great," Nepeta scowled beneath her helmet as Mashin Express took off after depositing the rest of her team onto the ground. "So that's what Enter was planning with whatever he stole from Corinth."  
  
"We'll have to team up again to beat these two," Garuza said with lament. "How annoying."  
  
Jouki and Express leveled against the two resurrected Venjix Generals, mindless and snarling 'Stone!' as they were, even as Madison's Solar Streak Train Zord circled overhead, beginning a transformation sequence.  
  
"Fine," Esprez said to Garuza, "but this is the last time, Garuza!"  
  
Nepeta tapped her morpher, "Mashin Gattai!"  
  
 **_"MASHIN GATTAI!"_**  
  
With two flashes of light- two Megazords landed opposite the two Venjix Generals- one the usual Ghost Express, the other the Mystic Force Solar Streak Megazord.  
  
"Ready to send these rejects back to the scrap pile?" Madison asked.  
  
"Let's finish this so we can take on Enter," Garuza grouched.  
  
And then the battle began.   
  


* * *

"Anyone need a refresher on the plan?" Atsuya asked as the Rangers ran through the forest towards the few remaining buildings on the planet- a battle between giants raging behind them.  
  
"We're good on it if you are," Miko grinned.  
  
"We'll keep Enter distracted until you get Iyo free," Sally said with a nod.  
  
"And if possible, destroy him while freeing the host," Hiromu said grimly.   
  
"Alright then," Atsuya nodded.  
  
"Let's do this thing!" Zahra shouted.  
  
And thus, several morph cries went into the air.  
  
 _"OVERDRIVE, ACCELERATE!"_  
  
 _"MAGICAL SOURCE! MYSTIC FORCE!"_  
  
 _ **_"It's Morphing Time!"_**_  
  
 _"SET VISORS!"_  
  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI GO!"_**_  
  
 _"KIRAMEI CHANGE!"_  
  


* * *

  
Enter clapped coldly, stepping outside as the teams of Rangers approached his base. Iyo's pained screams from inside could still be occasionally heard.  
  
"Ca Va, Power Rangers?" Enter asked, gazing at the teams. Mystics, Overdrives, Kiramagers, Go-Busters. All of them already suited up.  
  
It was fair game. A snap of his fingers, a matching horde of Uguts teleported into the field- the last of his minions.  
  
"Enter," Equius demanded, raising his sword. "Stop what you're doing, and give us Iyo."  
  
"Not possible," Enter said. "I've already begun the process of extracting her memories from her body. Reversing that now would kill her, body, mind, and soul."  
  
"Extracting...?" Youko began.  
  
"He's going to try and put Escape's mind into her body, no possession cards at all," Ryujii guessed.  
  
"Well well well guessed, Blue Buster," Enter said. Scowling, he drew his sword. "The process cannot be reversed at this stage. The energy requirements are simply not available at all." He then smirked, somewhat cruely, "Escape will be given a proper body to live in now, and Iyo will be discarded, much as I now discard my life to ensure Escape's birth. It is only fair, as her Papa, after all."  
  
"You're not Messiah, Enter," J began, clad in gold instead of silver, and causing Enter to do a double take. "Escape as she was is dead. It's cruel to continually attempt to revive her like this."  
  
"You haven't changed at all, Stag, rather, Beet Buster," Enter said. "Even if you've changed your suit, and sound somewhat more like Masato. You've not changed." He then held his arms out wide. "Meanwhile. I Have Continued To Evolve."  
  
Swirls of data swam around Enter's body, encapsulating his body, leaving his head free.   
  
"And now, we'll see if my Evolution is enough to stop you from hindering Escape's own evolution," Enter said. "Let's Morphin'." And then the Helmet sealed around his head.  
  
The Uguts took that as their cue to charge at the Rangers.  
  
"LET'S GO!" Miko shouted- and the Rangers charged forwards.  
  


* * *

  
"You're a smart one, Daniel Jackson," Oladdin said, chuckling to himself as Daniel stared at him. "Yes, truthfully, only Esprez was in a state one could consider 'Properly Ascended.' It's amazing that you're the first to truly see through it."  
  
"You mean the Others-?" Daniel stopped short.  
  
"They had no idea," Oladdin nodded. "I am, yes, faking it to some degree. Sincerely enough that it's hard to notice at a glance, but it is... somewhat false. Crystalians, as you may not know, have the ability to save our souls into a nearby Kiramei Stone if it does not already host something. My own wife has preserved herself in such a manner, and when my time came, I, too, preserved my soul into something."  
  
"Crystalians can be like Liches, then," Daniel paused, then. "...Enter stole a bunch of Kiramei Stones from a vault, your Phylactery wouldn't have happened to have been-?"  
  
"A Kiramei Stone housed within that vault?" Oladdin asked with a slight, dry chuckle. "Well. Now that is a question. You see, while I'm 'Half-Ascended' as you put it, I truly have no memory of where my 'mortal' shell is."   
  
"...You seriously wipe your own memory when you access the Ascended Plane," Daniel stated rather than asked.  
  
"What can I say? It helps sell the act!" Oladdin gave a hapless shrug.  
  


* * *

  
From a screen in his base, Lothor watched as the battle commenced, and he chuckled to himself.  
  
"Soul swapping, eh? Well, I can see a use for that," Lothor smirked. "A very worthy use, at that."  
  
He teleported away from his base to perform some personal acts of major evil.

* * *

[ **> [S] Burn ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6RSiiydK68)

"Plan S!" Atsuya called out, and he, Harley and Tomo split off from the group mele, ducking out of sight as Enter was focused on fighting the five Go-Busters.  
  
There, Tomo held out the Sub-in, and Atsuya activated it, creating a duplicate of himself.  
  
"Good luck," Tomo said.  
  
"Thanks," Harley nodded.  
  
"You too," Atusya said, looking to Tomo. "Good luck!"  
  
"We'll need it," Tomo said, then rushed back into battle with the Sub-in while Harley and Atsuya ran around, sneaking towards the old plant styled building that had seen better days.  
  
And thus, Enter would only notice one Kiramager missing instead of three.  
  
 **[Staight as an Arrow/ You Carry Our Intentions Through the Wind**  
  
Ghost Express rammed into the Venjix General wielding the smoke pipe as a staff weapon- pushing it through trees and rocks with ease.  
  
"STONE!" it shouted, squealing in terror at the speed overwhelming it.  
  
 **[Doubts all around you/ But you're gonna get the message to your friend**  
  
Fighting against the gold plated one, Solar Streak threw a round of punches against the enemy's spear- who roared- "STONE!" in annoyance.  
  
 **[At every rendevouz, you keep on looking around**

Entering the building, Atsuya and Harley looked around for a means of ascending- and found a stairwell that they began climbing upwards- no Uguts spawned to get in their way.  
  
 **[Night time in the city and the rain keeps falling down**  
  
Garuza shouted- and a burst of dark flames bellowed from Jouki's maw, smashing into the enemy Monstone-Mecha and blasting a hole clean through its staff weapon.  
  
 **[Let me tell you how it all works out**  
  
Miko punched an Uguts in the face with a crimson boxing glove spell.  
  
 **[I never thought we had so much time to lose**  
  
Equius roared- slicing through several Uguts with a swing of his Kiramental enhanced sword.  
  
 **[Just learning how to twist and shout**  
  
Fargo and Kanaya teamed up- Yellow Ranger suits back to back and shoulder to shoulder- as they fired off with their spellstaff and blaster respectively.  
  
 **[Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use**

As Tavvy fired off water blasts with his custom weapon, June and Vrissy leaped over his shoulders and unleashed a mighty hammer swing and a hurricane of wind respectively.  
  
 **[Let me tell you how it all works out**  
  
Tomo and the subbed in Atsuya fired off with their Kiramei Shots- taking out Uguts left and right.  
  
 **[I never thought we had so much time to lose**  
  
Hector and Serara combined their spell powers- unleashing bursts of magical vines that first entrapped, and then overloaded the Uguts circuits with torrents of water directly into the nerves.  
  
 **[Just learning how to twist and shout**  
  
Zahra and Sally readied their staff weapons, and swung out- Overdrive's Mercury and Red Ranger powers combing for a dreadfull cross slash that took out several Uguts like they were being bowled over.  
  
 **[Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use**

Up above, Madison had the Solar Streak Megazord unleash a burst of blinding flames from the furnace that punched a hole clean through the golden Venjix General's chest- shattering the Monstone within.  
  
 **[Pilgrim knows the road to go,**  
  
Harley and Atsuya arrived in the top chamber room, only to find that they weren't alone with Iyo's unconscious body. "Lothor!"  
  
 **[How many times we've told you so?**  
  
"Ah, crap," Lothor swore as he saw them enter.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down; Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
Needless to say, Kelzaks teleported in, and the Kiramagers were suddenly kept on the offensive while Lothor hurriedly scrambled to meddle with Enter's mechanisms.  
  
 **[No Rhyme or Reason, No way to make easy 'til it's done,**  
  
Enter swore as he backflipped away from the Go-Busters, who were using enhanced energy protocols on their weapons that were absolutely TEARING at the digital-soul-projected armor he wore.   
  
**[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down; Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
Where they'd gotten such techniques didn't matter- it was likely the same weapon frequency that they'd used against his Evangelions.  
  
That didn't make it any tougher to swallow the feeling of impending defeat as Ghost Express brutally chainsawed the other recreated Venjix General in two- also destroying its Monstone core.  
  
 **[So you're crossing to the other side of the street?**  
  
Of course, he'd prepared for that- the third giant robot to rise after the defeat of the first two appeard then- a womanly figure clad in water valves and steam pipe regalia... and had no small measure of shower-knobs aligning its body in no discernable pattern- even if two of them were prominely affixed on its chest in a rather parallel manner.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
"STOOOONE!" It shouted- unleashing a gout of steamed water at both Megazords from its hands.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
"GET LOST!" Madison yelled- unleashing a counter burst of solar energy in response.  
  
 **[Should know better but you keep turning up the heat!**  
  
Lothor grabbed at some device as a screen flashed a green 'all-clear' and then threw it across the room at the Kiramagers.  
  
 **[Let me tell you how it all works out**  
  
"HEY!" Harley shouted- teleporting it right back at him with a clap of her hands.  
  
 **[I never thought we had so much time to lose**  
  
Lothor shouted as he got clonked on the head by his own improvised weapon- falling backwards--  
  
 **[Just learning how to twist and shout**  
  
His right arm slammed against a lever, releasing the restraints on Iyo's hands and feet.  
  
 **[Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use**  
  
And so too did the clamps holding in the two data cards release- one falling to the floor without much fanfare...  
  
 **[Let me tell you how it all works out**  
  
And the other releasing with a massive burst of purple energy and a ghostly shout.  
  
 **[I never thought we had so much time to lose**  
  
And somewhere in the mix- a power generator sparked-  
  
 **[Just learning how to twist and shout**  
  
And went BOOM.  
  
 **[Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use**  
  
Enter spun around as the fighting slowed with the explosion.  
  
 **[Oh-oh-ai-ai**  
  
A massive hole and been punched into the roof of that building- smoke pouring out of it.  
  
 **[(hey hey hey hey)**  
  
 _ **_"It's Time for Special Buster!"_**_ The Go-Busters' weapons activated.  
  
 **[Make me feel this**  
  
 _ **_"KIRAKIRAMEI CHARGE!"_**_ Tomo readied their Kiramei Buster.  
  
 **[(hey hey hey hey)**  
  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI CHARGE!"_**_ Equius readied his sword.  
  
 **[Hey Hey Hey Hey**  
  
The Go-Busters and Kiramagers lined up their shots and sword strikes.  
  
 **[(hey hey hey hey)**  
  
Enter, with his back turned, could only reach up towards the newly made hole in shock.  
  
 **[Make Me Feel It**  
  
"Escape...!" Enter started on.  
  
 **[(Oh-oh-ai-ai)**  
  
 _"KIRA-BUSTER STREAM!"_ they shouted out.  
  
 **[When they lose you, it can use you**  
  
 _ **"FIRE!"**_ And then four energy blasts and three sword strikes came down on Enter- modulated with a very specific wavelength.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
The suit was blasted off of his body- and Enter's very appearance seemed to ghost off of the stolen body- thrown forwards and away from his host.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
Unlike the last time, however- when those ghostly tendrils refused to be removed- the strands broke-  
  
 **[Break me open, I need someone to see me**  
  
-And Enter's whole essence evaporated as a red glowing black colored card went shooting out into the air, landing with a thud near the building entrance.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
A moment later- a flicker ZAP of a green teleport- and Harley and Atsuya re-appeared, with a slumped over Iyo held between them.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
Equius ran over to check on the girl, and the Uguts all powered down.  
  
 **[Make me feel it, _Make me Feel..._!!**  
  
But that was when Lothor stumbled out of the building.

He flashed a small grin as he knelt down and picked up the card that had been blown out of Enter. "Well well. I should thank you all for the hard work... But I wont."  
  
He snapped his fingers- and then in teleported in the Ninja Storm rangers, sans Yellow.  
  
"Bring Me the Girl," Lothor said, and then teleported away.  
  
"Yes, Lothor!" The Ninjas replied.  
  
"Lothor!" Garuza shouted- but he had more pressing concerns as the steam-monster attacked Ghost Express with a furious steam pummel- a splash of condensed rain falling down as it reflected off of the Megazord and cooled down almost instantly.  
  
"This is getting out of hand!" Nepeta snapped.  
  
"Agreed," Esprez growled.  
  
 **[In the city and the rain is falling down**  
  
"Give us the girl," The Red Ninja Storm Ranger said. "Now."  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
"Like hell we're doing that!" Harley shouted.  
  
 **[(Burn you up, they're gonna burn you down)**  
  
"Fine then!" Ridley shouted- and the Kelzaks appeared, taking the place of the Uguts.  
  
 **[You can make it happen with your eyes, with your eyes alone.**  
  
The battle resumed- with the Go-Busters and Kiramagers (numbering six including the Sub-in) fighting to defend Iyo while the Mystics and Overdrives continued to fight the cannon fodder.  
  
 **[Let me tell you how it all works out**  
  
The Ninjas ran at speed, fighting against their opponents with blurs of motion.  
  
 **[I never thought we had so much time to lose**  
  
Meanwhile up above- the Solar Streak grabbed onto the shower-steam robot, restraining it from behind.  
  
 **[Just learning how to twist and shout**  
  
"SOLAR BEAM!" Madison shouted-   
  
**[Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use**  
  
-And a burst of boiling flames exploded through the Monstone core of that Robot, right through the chest.  
  
 **[Let me tell you how it all works out**  
  
Below, as the battle continued on, Kanaya broke out her Chainsaw, and targeted the Blue Ninja Ranger.  
  
 **[I never thought we had so much time to lose**  
  
Needless to say, Ridley was NOT happy with that decision as Kanaya leaped at her.  
  
 **[Just learning how to twist and shout**  
  
She dodged away- and Kanaya's swinging Chainsaw accidentally hit the ground--  
  
 **[Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use**  
  
Dirt spewed upwards into the air and splashed against the Red Kiramager's face...  
  
 **[Break Me Open... (Let me tell you how it all works out)**  
  
-Rather, the Sub-in, that turned out to be the one guarding Iyo in that moment. Its face was covered and it blindly left itself open to being taken advantage of.  
  
 **[(I never thought we had so much time to lose)**  
  
The Navy thunder Ranger swooped in- striking against the back of the Sub-In's neck, sending a loud crack through the air as the Sub-in utterly crumbled under the impact.  
  
 **[Make me Feel It... (Just learning how to twist and shout)**  
  
The Sub-in Red Kiramager vanished with a burst of exploding Blue Diamond shards-   
  
**[(Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use)**  
  
The Navy Thunder Ranger grabbed Iyo's body off the ground and teleported away in that instant.  
  
 **[Break Me Open...(Let me tell you how it all works out)**  
  
"That's our cue to scram!" Ridley said, and then the rest of the Ninja Storm Rangers and their Kelzaks teleported out after him.  
  
 **[(I never thought we had so much time to lose)**  
  
Seeing everything resolved, Garuza took the moment to say, "Alliance Over," and then forcibly broke Ghost Express apart with a burst of Jamental.  
  
 **[Make me Feel It...**  
  
As the Solar Streak caught Mashin Express as it tumbled out of the Megazord- Mashin Jouki rode off into a pirtal.  
  
"Oh COME ON!" Harley shouted- kicking at an Uguts unresponsive torso. "We almost had it!!"  
  
"Well," Atsuya said, "atleast they didn't get away with these." He retrieved the two data cards that had fallen out of their restraints with a tap of his Morpher. "Maybe we lost Iyo's body, but not her mind?"  
  
"Let's hope so," Tomo said, picking up a chunk of broken Sub-in. "Geeze, Carry's not going to be happy about this development either."  
  


* * *

"Now play along and I'll give you all the credit for the plan of stealing the girl," Lothor said to Garuza as they marched down the hallways into a certain room in Gilgamesh's palace, a Bechat trailing behind them.  
  
"I see no reason to stress our partnership further than it has been after earlier today," Garuza agreed.   
  
"Good," Lothor nodded. "For now we'll remain allies in this cruel place."  
  
"For now," Garuza agreed.  
  
The implicit mutual betrayal further down the line was all but stated.  
  
They arrived in Gilgamesh's private chambers, where their golden lord sat upon a throne, sipping annoyedly at a glass of wine. His face twisted with a snarl at its taste.   
  
"Why," he said, voice rolling with the annoyed rumbles of an unfed Wraith, "does food not satistfy me any more?"  
  
Lothor and Garuza weren't sure if he was talking to them or to himself, and so neither said a thing in response to that.  
  
Garuza coughed politely, "My Lord, we have brought you Enter, as promised."  
  
Lothor presented the black card as Gilgamesh looked up, and snarled. "Ahhh... Our wayward traitor. To think I'd have given him a second chance if he'd just stuck around instead of running and hiding like the coward he is." A pause. _**"Install him."**_  
  
Garuza pulled the Bechat forwards, and Lothor stuck the card into the Bechat's Chest.  
  
As a transformation overcame the Bechat, Garuza shoved it forwards into the center of the room, closer to Gilgamesh, and watched as Enter completed the motion, gasping for breath.  
  
"OH. That was... Very unpleasant." He said, shuddering- and then, realizing where he was. "Oh. Majeste Gilgamesh, I-"  
  
 **"SILENCE."** Gilgamesh rose, and a tension of psychic energy filled the room as the Wraith biology kicked in. **"YOU. YOU HAVE DONE FAR. FAR. TOO MUCH DAMAGE TO THE CAUSE. IT MAKES ME REGRET EVEN RESCUING YOU IN THE FIRST PLACE."** Gilgamesh stormed towards Enter, and grabbed the man by his jacket collar by both hands. ** _"NOW._ THAT IS A MISTAKE I WILL RECTIFY."** Enter was lifted upwards.  
  
With his left hand still holding Enter in the air, Gilgamesh's right hand tore open Enter's shirt, exposing his chest, and then slammed his right palm against the once Digital Avatar's chest.  
  
Lothor glanced away, and Garuza stared on as Enter's screams filled the air.  
  
Neither said a word, but both knew now what the price of failure would mean now, going forwards.  
  
It wasn't long before the card fell out of the Bechat's back, shattering into fragments on the floor. It wasn't longer still before the Bechat itself colapsed into a pile of dust.  
  
Enter was dead.  
  
Gilgamesh turned to leave without another word, dismissing Garuza and Lothor with a wave of his bloodied right hand.  
  
"...Suddenly," Lothor said, "I'm far less inclined to want to betray you, Garuza."  
  
"Agreed," Garuza said. "I also am suddenly not all that interested in taking credit for anything involved in today's events."  
  
"Me either," Lothor grimaced, and nodded. "Let's, ah, go finish tracking down those relic fragments. Best to not let them fall into the wrong hands if you catch my meaning."  
  
"I do," Garuza said with a faint nod.  
  
They turned to leave.  
  
The implicit fact that Emperor Gilgamesh had to die, one way or another, did not need to be said.  
  
Neither did the fact that someone would have to take over running the place after his death need to be stated either.  
  
But that was an issue for after the first was dealt with.  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: NOVEMBER 20TH, 2012.**  
  
Iyo Kodera opened her eyes, and found herself in the Atlantis Hologram Room, surrounded by worried Kiramagers, as well as a few other Atlantis Professionals- Rodney Mckay, Rose Lalonde, Janet Fraiser...  
  
"What...?" She stared out. "Am I... A Hologram!?" She looked down at her hands- which clenched tightly. _"THAT BASTARD STOLE MY BODY!"_  
  
"Well," Equius said as Iyo started ranting aloud about the injustice of it all, "Atleast we know her mind's intact now."  
  
"There's that, atleast," Nepeta agreed with a sigh.  
  
"What about the other card?" Atsuya asked of Rodney Mckay.  
  
"Data's scrambled and corrupted," he answered, shaking his head. "There's no way to retrieve anything off of it."  
  
"So that means Escape is probably dead, then," Atsuya frowned.   
  
"If by that you mean 'Let's hope that means there's one less villain to deal with,' then, yeah," Rodney said.   
  


* * *

  
The Atlantis Stargate shut down after the last of a work crew stepped through its eventhorizon.  
  
"Welcome back," Keiko greeted the team, led by Gordon Freeman and Radek Zelenka, down at the base of the stairs. "How'd it go?"   
  
"We've successfully dismantled the last of Enter's mechanisms and devices," Zelenka answered. "What wasn't melted solid from the explosion, that is."  
  
"We also finished cleaning up the Monstone Fragments and hurled 'em into the Stargate vortex," Gordon added. "So. Yeah. Cleanup's complete."  
  
"Good," Keiko nodded. "Let's hope that's the last we've seen of any of Enter's side of things so we can refocus our efforts on dealing with Gilgamesh's army entirely."  
  
"You realize now that we've dealt with Enter, they're likely to step up their own serious efforts to take over everything again, right?" Gordon asked.  
  
"I dunno," Keiko gave a forced smile. "If the memory files Esprez pulled off of Jouki yesterday are anything to go by, Gilgamesh's forces might be focusing on rebuilding their trashed Earth Empire for a good while."  
  
"One can only hope," Zelenka shook his head.  
  
As the work team headed off to get changed, Keiko Ayano stood there, and gazed at the Stargate, the forced smile falling away, leaving a worried look on her face.   
  
"Yeah," She said quietly. "That."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Act 8 Act 3, folks.  
> We open up with one hell of a bang of an episode. And Enter... Enter is FINALLY dead. 
> 
> I've got a lot to say about this chapter.
> 
> First off this whole sequence was going to be a THREE parter instead of a two parter, but the third part was way too short when I'd finished it and realized it'd work better if I merged it with the second part to just make it a full two parter. You can probably guess where the break was. 
> 
> Next off, I doubt Kiramager will do a proper mecha roll call, so I wanted to do one for this fic and this seemed to be the best place to do it. So, yeah. Go-Onger roll call theme music while they're doing the mecha roll call. How fun is that? XD It's one heck of a nod, at any rate. And I had fun writing it AND doing the picture for it, too. 
> 
> Following that, Burn You Up Burn You Down- the musical theme tying this whole act together. Almost every single chapter in this act baring the intermissions is named after lyrics from this song- with this chapter itself being named after the song itself. This is theme ONE of this act. 
> 
> Theme two, is the recurring subtheme running through the intermissions- that is to say, more meta talk between Dirk and myself. There's a reason for it and it builds somewhere, trust me on that much. That said it does feel a little self-indulgant, but I suppose that's part of the point on this specific thing, because it ties into theme THREE:
> 
> Choices, and the aftermath of making them. ...which I won't touch on it more than that here, because I want you to see how that plays out in action through the act itself. 
> 
> \---
> 
> This act so far feels a lot more tightly paced than the previous ones have so far- I've written through just about most of it so far without long delays, save when I was writing this chapter, ironically. There aren't as many SG:Atlantis chapters this act, so I think that probably helps with the pacing a bit. 
> 
> \---
> 
> So, that leaves us with the next chapter: INTERMISSION: Time For Yet Another Meta Interlude.
> 
> That will probably go up Sunday or Monday. I'm not sure what my upload schedule will be for this act yet. 
> 
> Guess we'll find out as we go along, huh?


	2. INTERMISSION: Time For Yet Another Meta Interlude.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dirk has another conversation over chess; Tomo takes out their frustrations on the Reset Button.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Dirk Strider.  
> Meta Discussion.  
> Brief Discussion of Death and Loss.

**EARTH DATE: NOVEMBER 25TH, 2012.**  
  
Dirk Strider made the opening move on the chessboard. "You do realize that's inconsequential to the matter, given you're the one starting this dialogue yourself, right?"  
  
"What matter?" The figure sitting across from him asked, brown cloak hung around them hood obscuring their face.  
  
"I dunno, let's start with the obvious fact that we're meeting at a park in public this time," Dirk said, narrowing his eyes as his chess opponent considered the board. "And you've decided to give yourself an avatar here this time instead."  
  
"Avatar, a funny word, isn't it?" The opponent said, moving a piece on the board to counter Dirk's move. "I know it best from the Video Game world. A projection of oneself that exists in another space to represent ones interests and motives. In literature, an Author Avatar is a representation of the Author themself inside the world they've supposedly written." Green eyes flicked upwards, meeting orange. "Your move."  
  
Dirk considered the board. "And you're ignoring the point. What's different this time that you'd actually risk blatant narrative derailment by actually inserting yourself into our world after being the voice behind the curtain, letting others represent your work this whole time. Why?" He moved a piece- a meaningless move that accomplished nothing in the long run of the game.  
  
There was no strategy to it.  
  
The opponent considered the board. Considered their words. They took a drink of water from their bottle.  
  
"I needed the fresh air," they said, moving another piece to counter Dirk's meaningless move with something that pretended it had strategy behind it, but was just as meaningless as the fact that none of the pieces moved had been named, or to what squares they'd gone to.  
  
"Bull. And. Shit." Dirk countered another move instantly. "This is not _Fresh Air."_  
  
"It is if I wanted to go without a mask. And I don't mean for the quarantine stuff, either," they countered, eyeing the board, pretending to be considering the moves. "Here, I'm as anonymous as I can ever be. Any _one_ I want to be. Any _way_ I want to be." Green eyes flashed violet, and teal, then orange, and back to green.   
  
Dirk scoffed at the flagrant display of power. "And what about the change in narrative here?"  
  
"I literally just posted our last conversation and I found the invisible opponent strategy doesn't work as well as I'd liked it to," They replied, smiling faintly. "The bitter benefit of hindsight."  
  
"That's not the only thing bitter about you, right now," Dirk said, sipping at his coffee thermos a moment later.  
  
"No, I suppose not," they answered, moving a piece finally. "I lost another family member, this month."  
  
"My condolences," Dirk said, tone of voice neutral enough to actually imply he meant it. And maybe he did. This Dirk wasn't the kind of Dirk who'd throw away a family connection callously, after all. He raised an eyebrow at the narration, and said nothing in response because the eyebrow said it all.  
  
"Nice Teal'c Impression," The Opponent appraised. "And thanks." They paused. "I'm finding myself at a crossroads, lately."   
  
"Don't we all?" Dirk asked, finally making a counter move.  
  
"I don't quite know what to do," They said, gazing at the board. "Honestly, I don't want to go through that again, but I know I will eventually. I'm one of the younger people in my family. I'm bound to lose more. Being older than some, they're bound to lose me, eventually, too. I think I've accepted that as well as any mortal human can."  
  
"Heroic or Just is the question for all of us," Dirk mused. "Conditional Mortality or not."  
  
"Add 'martyr' and 'sacrifice' to there somewhere, and you've got a quadrant grid," the opponent said, finally moving a piece.  
  
"Let's not talk quadrants," Dirk said. "You've got your Moirail, and they ain't me."  
  
"True, true," They smiled.  
  
Neither said anything as they gazed at the board, and Dirk finally moved another piece after about a minute's silence.  
  
"Ooh, tricky one," The world traveler said, wincing at the sudden situation on the board.  
  
"So, what brings you by, besides an inkling to get thrashed at Chess and trying to avoid the stressors of the quote, unqoute, 'real world'?" Dirk asked.  
  
"I've been writing for this world for over three years now," They answered. "The last Act was... a mess. Let's be honest here."  
  
"It wasn't that bad," Dirk said.  
  
"But it wasn't as strong as it could have been either," they countered. "Everything was bouncing from reaction to reaction as I processed sudden plot twists. I got too greedy and didn't wait for more episodes to air first."  
  
"Yeah, you did drop that Silver Wing plot thread pretty quickly," Dirk observed. "How come you're not covering it still?"  
  
"Would YOU like it If I suddenly went and covered every bit of personal, professional therapy you had with someone?" They exhaled, gazing at the board, and then finally moved a piece. "I honestly shouldn't have started that Act that way anyways. I should have waited to know what my own situation was so I could quell the emotions before they got funneled into the world."   
  
"You haven't finished posting the Act yet either," Dirk said. "Atleast, not from this point in time."  
  
They gave a faltering smile. "And I'm still not confident about it. Too much build up, and too little all at the same time. That damned Monstone twist. I just..." They shook their head. "It's lucky enough I've got enough foresight for the rest of this act already, even if I haven't really buckled down to write for it yet."  
  
"Instead, you're here with me," Dirk said, countering the other's chess move. "Playing Chess, talking shop."  
  
"Seemed like a good idea at the time," They admitted.   
  
Idly, they reached up, scratched at their chest, just over their heart, and yawned.   
  
"Hrm," They stared at the board. "I should probably..."  
  
"I'll make it simple for you," Dirk moved another piece- his King- removing it from the board, "Game Over."  
  
"Why?" They asked, frowning.   
  
"Go get some sleep, idiot," Dirk said. "You're stretching yourself far too thin right now."  
  
They sighed. "I don't want to. But fine. Fine fine fine..."  
  
"What are you, some little kid?" Dirk asked, quirking an eyebrow. "You've worked enough today. Go to bed."  
  
"It's never enough," They said, standing from the table. "Got too much left undone."  
  
"You're allowed to take breaks and rest, you know," Dirk said.  
  
"Tell that to my brain," they said, and left.  
  
Dirk stared at the empty space a moment longer, and then gazed up at the sky and said, "Stop that."  
  


* * *

  
With a snarl, Tomo Strider took a hammer to the Reset Button.  
  
 **FWASH.**  
  
Several-  
  
 _ **FWASH.**_  
  
Times-  
  
 ** _FWASH._**  
  
In rapid-  
  
 **FWASH.**  
  
Suc-  
  
 _ **FWASH.**_  
  
-cession.  
  
"...Okay. Now that I've gotten that out of my system," Tomo said, putting the hammer down on the table, and eyeing the button. "Let's figure out a way to work around that self protection protocol and take you apart without creating a time reset to JUST before I decide to hit you with a hammer, shall we?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was honestly dead tired when I wrote the first... three fourths of this intermission? Also pushing way too hard to try and write a dissection of the last Act before having finished publishing it. If anyone cares to check what day that I published that chapter in the last act where Dirk first played against me, that was the day I wrote this. 
> 
> Honestly this is probably the weakest of any of the Meta scenes in this act. There's always the matter of ticking clocks in this world, it feels like. And there's this strange sense of 'how was that even what I was thinking?' when looking backwards on this particular moment. For instance, I've already written most of the way through this act already. Just got a few chapters left *TO* Write, really. Tighter pacing, really. 
> 
> I may be going a bit overindulgent in the meta side of things on this act, I'll be honest. But it's how I'm choosing to explore one of the major themes in this act. I could cut it all out and nobody would be the wiser, but... I've already chosen how to progress with it. 
> 
> Next Chapter: MSK: 01X18: "Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use!" (Partners Swapped!?)
> 
> That'll either be Monday or Friday. Haven't decided which, but if you don't see the next chapter 'til Friday I guess that explains that. LOL.


	3. MSK: 01X18: "Doesn't matter much which damn beat you use!" (Partners Swapped!?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurantula's latest attack has heads spinning, and people living a day in other people's shoes.
> 
> That's right, it's the requisite body swap episode.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Body swap.  
> Reincarnation Related Trauma Stress.  
> Body Dysphoria.  
> Picture Embedding.  
> Picture Linkage.

**EARTH DATE: NOVEMBER 26TH, 2012.**  
  
"Maaaashiiiiiiiiiiiinnn!!!!" Carry cried out- sparkling brightly... but not transforming out of her gemstone form. _"NNNGH! **C'MOOON!!** "_  
  
Nepeta placed her hand on top of the lavender colored gemstone, patting softly. "There there, it'll be alright. Don't strain yourself."  
  
Carry let out a long huffing sigh of annoyance. "It's not fair!"  
  
"Sometimes, life isn't," Nepeta sighed as well, and looked across the lounge room towards the table where Atsuya, Tomo, and Harley were trying to piece together the broken Sub-In doll for what felt like the hundreth time.  
  
"Okay..." Harley said, focusing her powers on the stone- obvious in the way the green aura zapped around its broken edges. "I think we've got it stable."  
  
"Hands off...!" Tomo took their hands away.  
  
"Alright..." Atsuya took out the sketchbook and held out the old image. "Please return to being this!"  
  
The Kiramei Stone fragments pulsed- hummed with energy...  
  
And then abruptly shattered as the energy didn't mix well with Harley's powers, and crumbled into the fragments yet again.  
  
"Oh Come On!" Harley snapped. "Even using my powers as a glue doesn't work!?"  
  
Tomo hung their head. "I think this thing's totally broken."  
  
Atsuya sighed. "Yeah. There probably isn't much in the way of fixing it. We'll have to see about making it from scratch, maybe..."  
  
Everyone turned their eyes towards the OTHER chunk of Blue Diamond Kiramei Stone in the room- the one destined to become a part of the Aqua Kiramei stone that still slumbered out in the Zord Bay.  
  
"Everyone, don't worry so much!" Fiya said from said Zord Bay as polishing machines pulled away from his form. "I know it'll all work out eventually."  
  
"Poor Carry-chan though!" Heliko lamented. "Until it gets fixed she's stuck a stone still!"  
  
"And you'll not be able to borrow it either," Shovellow remarked with a chuckle- sparkling with a just finished polish.  
  
"You and Nepeta were abusing it for swapping for quite a while," Mahha said. "I don't think Lady Harley and I ever had a chance to swap places."  
  
"You weren't missing out on much," Jetta said- still being polished up. "It was really stressful that one time I had to do it."  
  
"I don't quite get the appeal myself," Esprez said, hovering near the Aqua Kiramei Stone housing Jouki's consciousness. "But it seemed like a fun gimmick while it lasted."  
  
"Oh, what I wouldn't give to be able to fight like Nepeta-chan again!" Heliko wobbled. "We really had a blast confusing Garuza that one time!"  
  
"As I recall, you spun that Camera Jamenshi's head around so hard it broke a critical component," Nepeta remarked.  
  
"I did!" Heliko giggled. "He went all SPIIIIN! And then broke his wifi!"  
  
"Why did a Camera Monster like that even have Wifi enabled anyways?" Tomo asked.  
  
"Probably for the pun of it," Equius said, entering the room with a towel around his neck, and his hair slicked with water. "What are we talking about again? Besides defeated monsters."  
  
"Lamenting the destruction of the Sub-in for the hundredth time," Jetta said.   
  
"Ah," Equius nodded. "I see."  
  
"It's not fair," Carry whined. "I wanna walk around again!"  
  
"We'll figure something out," Harley said, smiling at the smaller stone.   
  
"Maybe we could ask the Princess for some Blue Diamond...?" Tomo started.  
  
"If you do, I call first dibs on the new Sub-in!" Shovellow said.   
  
"Mmmmrrrhhh..." Carry rumbled.  
  
"After Carry-chan can use it, of course!" Shovellow hastily added.   
  
"How come you first?" Mahha asked.  
  
"I dunno," Shovellow answered with a tilt. "Something about the last time I used it with Tomo's body felt nostalgically familiar somehow."  
  
"I know what you mean," Heliko agreed. "It was really warm and fuzzy in that kind of way, the first time!"  
  
"Seriously?" Mahha asked. "That seems strange."  
  
"I think even I felt that a little," Jetta said. "It's weird, yeah..."  
  
And that's when alarms sounded- and a hologram appeared in the center table.  
  
"Everyone!" Harry- as Gigant Driller- was calling out. _"Jouki's rampaging out of nowhere! I need backup!"_  
  
[Smog Jouki, meanwhile, seemed to be doing... **_jazz hands?_**](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap1.png) As he stomped through the city streets.  
  
"Let's go," Atsuya declared.

* * *

"DOORIYAH!" Harry punched forwards with his drill- and Jouki snapped backwards, dodging it.  
  
Then, the mecha ran off.  
  
"What the-!?" Harry groaned.  
  
 _ **_"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"_**_ appeared on the scene a moment later.   
  
"Sorry for the wait," Atsuya called out.  
  
"Jouki's been moving strangely," Harry said.   
  
"Besides Jazz Hands?" Harley asked.  
  
"It's like he's just messing around," Harry answered.   
  
They watched Jouki just sort of, leer down at some building, waggling side to side, roaring loudly as if taunting the people inside.

"This really doesn't seem like Garuza," Harry said.  
  
"Do you think someone stole Jouki?" Shovellow asked.  
  
"That Kurantula guy, maybe?" Tomo offered.  
  
"We'll just have to attack and find out!" Atsuya said.  
  
"Yeah!" Fiya agreed. "Let's go with Maxed Tension!"  
  
Kiramagein charged Jouki, swinging Jetta-- and Jouki spun out of the way.  
  
Harry swung his drill to counter- and Jouki spun the other way- running away.  
  
"Not again!" Harry huffed.  
  
"WAIT!" Harley shouted- and the two mechas chased after Jouki- passing by an intersection...  
  
"ALRIGHT, NOW!" A voice that sounded like Garuza's, but way more... Chipper... called out of Jouki's external speakers.  
  
And then a beam of swirling light smashed into Kiramagein and Gigant Driller- overwhelming the two mechas with a flash of rainbow light.

"What the...?" Harry got his wits about him as Kiramagein slumped forwards in a daze... "What just happened?"  
  
And then Kiramagein leaned backwards against him- falling towards the ground.  
  
"Woah-! Guys!!!" He shouted- unable to keep them upright with himself- "Wonder Heavy--!!"  
  
 _ **WHUMP.**_  
  
[Gigant Driller was pinned beneath the stunned Kiramagein](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap3.png).

Jouki just mimed laughing at them-roaring with a laughing motion.  
  
"Oh, that went well!" Said the Garuza suited figure within Jouki, rubbing his hands together. "Time to Go Home!"  
  
And then Jouki returned to a train- rushing by that intersection and picking up some traveler before entering a portal and escaping.  
  
Within Mashin Fiya's cockpit, Kiramei Red stirred to consciousness.   
  
"GAH! I won't be defeated!" He shouted- "I'm burning hot--!" he tried flipping to his feet and wound up crashing against the wall of the control room. "OW- What the-!?" He looked around, confused, as he righted into a sitting position. "Where am I?" he asked.  
  
"Huh?" one of Mashin Fiya's feet twitched. "When did I Leave the cockpit?"  
  
"You guys are so heavy!" Harry groaned. "Get off me already!!"  
  
He grabbed at Shovellow- "OWOWOWOWOW!" a familiar voice shouted out. "OI!!! Don't grab so hard!!"  
  
Harry looked in surprise- "Wait- Tomo?!"  
  
"Wait just a second-" a somewhat more mellow voice came out of the usually high pitched Heliko. "What's going on?"  
  
"I can't move at all," A distinctly female voice came out of the usually male Mahha.  
  
"Don't tell me," 'Jetta' tilted in Kiramagein's hands. "Jetta, can you hear me?"  
  
"WHaaa..." Equius, rather, Jetta, lay on the floor of the Blue hued Cockpit. "I- I don't know what's going on, Aniki!" He wound up flopping onto his belly. "It's like the sub-in but I can't control it right!"  
  
Within the green cockpit, 'Kiramei Green' twitched awake. "I don't want to move," Mahha said. "Everything feels wrong in ways I don't understand."  
  
"My Shovel!!" Shovellow shouted from Tomo's body. "Where'd my shovel go!?"  
  
"Oh wow!" Heliko said, looking at her hands, and then getting to her feet. "I'm Nepeta-chan again!" She whirled around- "Except! Too Literally!!"  
  
"Atsuya..." Fiya said, grasping at his helmeted head. "Don't tell me we...!"  
  
Atsuya, within Fiya's body- finished the sentence at the same time as his partner, "We Swapped Bodies!!"

["OUR SOULS WERE SWAPPED?!"](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap4.png) Everyone else shouted- even as Harry cried out-   
  
"Wonder Get Off Me Already!"

* * *

_"When People Shine!" Mashin Fiya called out in narration, "Miracles are Born!"_   
  
_"Kiramental!" He continued. "The proof of Warriors who can Change the Future!"_   
  
_"Tension Maxed!" he shouted- "KIRAMEI GO!!!"_

[ **_MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER_ ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

"Well, this is highly unorthodox," Gina Kae said, staring at the confused Mashin in squishy organic bodies, and the Kiramagers stuck in unyielding stone bodies- stuck in the Zord Bay for the moment.   
  
"Body Swaps," Harry scratched at the back of his head, ears flattening in annoyance. "Trite and overtried in Earth C Media. Dime a dozen... Honestly, I'm surprised it took this long."  
  
Fiya and Heliko seemed the most easily adapted of the five Mashin- though Heliko kept whriling around suddenly and whining about how 'that wasn't what she wanted'. Jetta kept winding up with his arms snapping out at his side like wings- much to his tired annoyance. Mahha just sat there perfectly still in a chair, as if afraid to move would be to break Harley's body. As for Shovellow?  
  
"HAHAHA! My back hasn't felt this good in years!!"   
  
...She was thoroughly enjoying the youthful healthy status of Tomo's spine.  
  
"Please stop dancing like that!" Tomo whined from the Zord Bay. "It's embarrassing!"  
  
"Not happening, Tomo! _This Digger longs to dance!! Hahahaha!"_  
  
Gina carefully corrected her assessment- it seemed that Shovellow was atleast as well adapted as Fiya was- if not more so.  
  
"Eeesh. Atsuya, not to complain, but how do you walk with such a light center of balance? I feel like I'm walking on air!" Fiya remarked, swaying slightly on his feet.  
  
"I guess the Sub-In did a lot more heavy lifting than we thought," Atsuya replied in turn.   
  
"I guess so," Nepeta agreed- wobbling unsteadily- and then tilted sidways off of the platform. "Waaah!"  
  
Fortunately, Esprez swooped in and caught her- though the noise of two stones clunking together made everyone flinch. "Easy there, Nepeta!"  
  
"Thank you, Esprez..." Nepeta said quietly, letting the other Mashin lift her back up onto the platform.  
  
"Mama and Papa are Kiramei Stones now?" Carry asked, floating up towards the window.   
  
"Yeeep," Harry sighed. "Your parents sure are."  
  
"Cool," Carry said simply, then turned to Harry and asked, "Why aren't you Drijan?"  
  
"Probably because I become Gigant Driller fully," Harry mused. "And also, Drijan doesn't have much going for it in terms of personality or sentience. So there's not much to swap, if anything." He did feel a bit weird in the back of his ears, though, kind of like they were caught in a constant pressure change of stuffiness.  
  
"So Drijan's just like the Sub-in for you?" Carry asked.  
  
"I suppose so," Harry nodded.  
  
"Lame!!" Carry pouted, and darted off out the nearest door as it slid open- startling Joey Claire as she tried to walk in.  
  
"Woah! Hey! Where's the fire?" She asked.  
  
"Here," Fiya raised his hand.  
  
Joey turned to look at the boy, then at Atsuya in the Zord Bay. "Uh..."  
  
"Body swap, don't ask," Harry sighed.  
  
"Harry, could you go get Carry?" Nepeta asked. "She seemed pretty upset."  
  
"Alright," Harry nodded, and then walked out after the stone. "Not like she can go far."  
  
"So... Body swap," Joey repeated as the door closed. "How did this happen?"  
  
"Probably a Jamenshi, Dus," Duston remarked, carefully hovering over towards Equius, who, like Nepeta, was having trouble staying balanced- prepared to swoop in and catch him at a moments notice.   
  
"That would make sense," Equius said.   
  
"So we just have to fight the Jamenshi and kill it to fix things," Harley guessed. 

"...We'll be waiting for it to return, until then, I guess," Mahha said quietly.   
  
"Zo," Mazellan started, "when will zat be?"  
  
"Should we have someone go out and search for it?" Joey offered.  
  
"Don't bother," Gina shook her head. "Security cameras caught it leaping onto Jouki when it left."  
  
"So it's gone for now," Fiya trailed off. "Do we know what it looks like?"  
  
Gina nodded, tapped at a screen, and brought up an image from the table's projector.   
  
Heliko was the only one who said anything after several long moments. "Is that a house mask?"  
  
"Oh, lovely," Joey said simply. "It's going to be one of THOSE monsters, isn't it?"  
  


* * *

  
Much to Harry's (non)surprise, he found Carry's full-sized gemstone form nestled in Mashin Drijan's holding cradle in the other 302-turned-Zord bay on the opposite side of the Beltus, not that the Zord was active, undergoing some maintainance work as it was.  
  
Harry sighed, and quickly Warp-Morphed into his own Kiramei Stone form with a double tap to his Morpher. "Kiramei Wonder Change."  
  
 _ **_"YAHOO! OH EXCELLENT!"_**_  
  
Ignoring the strangely odd feeling how much more- well- solid he felt in that moment compared to usual, Harry flexed his will from the floor, and Drijan's grabbing arm lifted down and grabbed his Kiramei Stone form- lifting him up and placing him down on a shelf next to Carry.  
  
"Go away," Carry said sourly.  
  
"You're upset, I get that," Harry said to the younger stone. "But Nepeta asked me to come find you. So I did. I'll keep you company until you're not."  
  
"...Fine," Carry huffed- and rattled in place.   
  
So they sat there for a few moments, until Harry started to talk.  
  
"So. I can't float like this," Harry said simply.  
  
Carry didn't immediately respond, but from the way her light shifted, he could tell she was looking at her... him? What? Harry shrugged off the momentary confusion. (The Jamenshi definitely did something to him, even if it wasn't to the extent of everyone else.)  
  
"As a stone, I have to have Drijan pick me up to put me into the slot. I can't float at all. It's a little annoying, actually," Harry continued on. "Even you can fly and float at will. I'm guessing you did that to get into Drijan, right?"  
  
Carry hummed in agreement.  
  
"So. Yeah. I can't fly. Can't float." Harry mused. "The others seem to be having just as hard of a time adapting to that. I guess it's not something that's really intuitive to someone used to walking on two legs."  
  
"I guess so," Carry said after a moment. Then. "How do you turn back?"  
  
"Hmm..." Harry thought for a moment. "How bout a trade: I walk you through how to shift into a human form, you walk me through how to float?"  
  
"..." Carry considered it for a long moment. "Deal!"  
  


* * *

  
"Hoverrrr....!" Nepeta strained into the air. "Hoverrr...!"  
  
And then-  
  
"SHRINK!" She shouted.  
  
With a flash of light...!!!  
  
Instead her gemstone form swapped directly into Mashin form... sans rotating helicopter blades.  
  
"EEP!" She fell- almost instantly she fell- if not for Esprez and Mazellan darting in and catching her.  
  
"You Almozt got it!" Mazellan encouraged.  
  
"MASHIN!" down on the Zord Bay Floor- Harley shifted from her Gemstone from directly into Car form. "It worked!!" She cheered- jumping into the air and accidentally shifting back to gemstone form- where she landed with a short thud that rattled the Zord Bay floor. "Owww..."  
  
"Lady Harley, please be careful!" Mahha cried from the Lounge.   
  
Tomo sighed, not moving at all from where they sat. "I'm just... going to wait things out for now. This body is really kinda sluggish feeling."  
  
"You can see why I'm so happy to be feeling footloose and fancy freeeeee!" Shovellow shouted from where she was still indeed dancing in the lounge.  
  
"Please at least learn something not so embarrassing!" Tomo pleaded.  
  
"Not happenin'!" Shovellow snapped back with glee.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
Atsuya had already figured out the shrinking trick, and was resting on the table next to the shattered Sub-in parts as he and Fiya gazed at them.  
  
"Man, this is really weird from your perspective, Atsuya," Fiya said, not wearing the glasses that blocked sparkles, as he picked up a chunk of rock. "Your Kiramental vision might be even more refined than my own is."  
  
"That's high praise, given how brightly you're sparkling right now yourself," Atsuya said.  
  
"Well, that extra sight's just what I need to see what's wrong with this, added to my own experience," Fiya said, holding up the chunk of stone. "It's got an image stored in it already, and it's rejecting any new ones because of that."   
  
"But we're just trying to make it turn back into what it was before," Atsuya would have frowned if he were able. He FELT like frowning at the very least.   
  
"True," Fiya said. "But I think the problem is that as long as it has this image stored on it, it won't let itself clear out. Think of it like..." He paused for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, think of it like a password on the computer. There's a file folder that's locked under a password and we don't have the key. And as long as that file's locked down, we can't edit or modify anything on the hard drive."  
  
"That's surprisingly technical of you," Atsuya said. "...I think I get the point, but just barely."  
  
"Yeah..." Fiya frowned. "I wonder if..." He trailed off, then... He put the fragment down on the table with the rest of them, held out his hand, and uttered some foreign sounding words that Atsuya took a moment to recognize as an Alfheim Magic Spell.  
  
And much to everyone's surprise, the spell worked- magic runes circled Fiya's arms, and the crystal shards glowed brightly- pulsing a familiar shade of lavender purple.  
  
Shovellow stopped dancing. Mahha turned and stared. Heliko's jaw dropped open.  
  
"I thought so," Fiya smirked. "Carry-chan's the one who put that image in these fragments. It's her own sense of self that she summons up every time you and Nepeta channeled your own images into it."  
  
"Fiya, that's amazing that you figured that out," Atsuya said.  
  
"But also," Gina Kae suddenly was up in the Mashin's face. "You just used a High Level Faerie spell that identifies an Object's owner."  
  
"I... did?" Fiya blinked.  
  
 _ **"WHERE**_ did you learn that spell?" Gina asked.  
  
Fiya instantly responded back, "College of Magic, New Arrun City, DCCS Unwritten." Then, he blinked- "Wait. _What?"_  
  
Silence filled the room after several long moments, and then, quietly, imperceptibly...  
  
Heliko whispered, "Oh. Farurin." She sunk to her knees, and leaned back against the nearest wall- shivvering. "Oh. No. Oh no. I think..." She gasped for air.  
  
"Uhoh," Joey swore. "I know that face." She started to move in towards Heliko.  
  
“Heliko? What’s wrong with Heliko?” Nepeta asked- managing to get her propellers whirlling in time to lift up to the window.  
  
"She's having a Panic Attack," Joey answered- touching the girl’s face. “Heli? Heli, Focus on me, alright. It’s not real. Not anymore.”  
  
"What's wrong?" Equius asked.  
  
Jetta swallowed suddenly. "I think Hellen just remembered how she died."  
  
"Hellen...?" Nepeta asked- then- gasped sharply- rotor blades stopping. She fell again- and this time shrunk in size with her fall, she vanished out of sight.  
  
"Huh?" Shovellow asked. "What's going on? What's everyone panicking over?"   
  
"Emilia," Mahha suddenly looked at Shovellow. “Don’t you remember?”  
  
“My name’s not Emi--” Shovellow stopped- then frowned, and seriously scrutinized Mahha for a long moment. “...Mack?”  
  
Mahha nodded, then fainted in the chair he sat in, even as Shovellow sat down on the floor- a shell shocked look on her borrowed face.  
  
“Oh no,” Atsuya got a grip on what was going on. “You guys...!”   
  
Nepeta, in a much smaller helicopter form, hurtled through an open door a few moments later, trailing alongside Esprez, also shrunken down, before coming to a halt next to Heliko- shifting back into gemstone form and landing in her partner’s lap. “Heli, I’m here. It’ll be okay...!”  
  
Heliko gasped. “The Fall. I was at the Fall of D’ni. How was I...?”  
  
“Korrag, that bastard,” Jetta said suddenly. “He killed us all for the Kiramei Stone Fragments...!?”  
  
“What’s going on?” Esprez asked. “I don’t get it! What’s going on here?”  
  
Gina gave a pained smile towards the white Kiramei Stone who had been reborn after her own previous death. “I think we just found out what happened to the missing Overdrive team, is what’s going on.”  
  
Heliko hiccuped- barely holding back the sobs and the pained tears as she remembered her own final moments.  
  
“...Operation Overdrive’s the Number One Team, eh?” Fiya asked himself quietly, shaking his head. “Man, what a joke I pulled on myself.”  
  
Gina tapped her radio- “Harry, if you’ve found Carry, bring her back to the lounge now, please. It’s an emergency.”  
  


* * *

  
Harry stared as he processed the news. Held in his arms, the small sized gemstone form of Carry fidgeted uncomfortably.  
  
“This was my fragment,” Mahha said, pointing at the Blue Diamond that they’d recovered from the Nexus Tunnel on Earth C. “I threw it into a passing tunnel as I ran from Korrag. And then I lied to him that I’d thrown it over the edge of the path into the void before he killed me. I’d recognize that shape anywhere.”  
  
“I... I hid it somewhere,” Jetta continued. “I don’t remember where.”  
  
“I know where I buried mine,” Shovellow said next. “It’s in Pegasus, of all places.”  
  
“I...” Heliko took in a deep gasp of air. “I... I gave mine to a... to a girl in D’ni and I- oh god, I sent her through a Book. I don’t... I don’t know what book or who she was or if she lived or not!”  
  
“Easy, Heli,” Nepeta nuzled up against Heliko’s neck. “It’s okay.”  
  
“Korrag stole my fragment,” Fiya said with a grimace... then, he laughed. “Oh my god. He stole my fragment and bragged to me that he’d already gotten the others!” he placed his hands on the table, grinning like a madman as he stared at the fragment Mahha had claimed as his. “The bastard Lied to me! Hahah! Out of everything, the only fragment he didn't miss was mine!”  
  
“Who’s Korrag?” Harry asked.  
  
The former Overdrive Rangers- the Kiramei Stones- all grimaced.  
  
Then, Shovellow answered, “Korrag’s the name our former Mercury Ranger took after being turned by Gilgamesh into hunting us down for the Kiramei Stone fragments we stole from his Treasury.”  
  
“More brainwashing, lovely,” Harley grouched- having managed to shrink down at some point, and rested on Mahha’s lap.   
  
“He wasn’t brainwashed,” Fiya said simply. “He willingly turned. I don’t know what that bastard promised him, but... it was enough.”  
  
“Atleast we know how he ended,” Jetta said with a deep breath.   
  
“We do?” Gina asked.  
  
“Remember Wolfy Knight?” Jetta gave a pained smile. “The guy the Mystics slapped down and petrified with that magic bird.”  
  
“Oh, I should’ve seen that coming,” Gina winced. 

* * *

Jouki Roared, returning to the ruined SGC.  
  
Garuza, stuck in Kurantula's body, snarled as he watched Kurantula and the Jamenshi dance their way into the base minutes later. "You're. Late."  
  
"Are weee?" Kurantula asked, posing funnily with Garuza's body.  
  
"You left Earth C almost five hours ago!" Garuza shouted. "It does NOT take that long to return to here from there on Jouki!"  
  
"Ah, well, I guess you could say we lost track of the time?" Kurantula asked.  
  
"Just hurry up and swap us back already!" Garuza said, eyeing the [Jamenshi with the house mask](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap5.png) as he stood next to his real body.

"Ah! Of course, Lord Garuza," The Jamenshi crossed his arms over his chest- "RELOCATION BEAAAAAAAM!"  
  
With a burst of light that struck them both- a flash of purple overcame them, and then Garuza stomped off in his real body.  
  
"Next time, ASK FOR PERMISSION FIRST!" He shouted.  
  
"Ah, well," Kurantula giggled. "Those Kiramagers are sure to be floundering about right now anyways, right, Relocation Jamen?"  
  
"I think so!" Relocation Jamen agreed.  
  


* * *

  
Fiya stood outside the Juuru family house on New Athos as Atsuya explained the situation to his parents- gazing up and outwards at the sky with fresh eyes.  
  
 _'Man,'_ he thought to himself, _'I didn't think that it'd wind up like this.'_  
  
The memories of his past life were swirling around dimly in the background, reawakened by the sensations of properly flowing blood within flesh. It was surprising how much of a difference there was between the Sub-In and a real organic body, when one got down to the comparisons at a granular level.  
  
But nothing was more surprising than the recurring memory among his team of the Phoneix that had come and saved them at the last moment. Oh, that they'd all reincarnated and wound up on the same team as Kiramei Stones wasn't any surprising at all when you considered that their deaths, separated across the years by the wibbly-wobbly nature of the void between realities, all had that common factor to it.  
  
A Golden Bird, whose feathers had burned as their souls had been taken in death, to be reborn as Kiramei Stones.  
  
It was no wonder the corrupted wish on Destoria hadn't been undone- the after-effects had already been imparted onto the reality that had made the wish to begin with. The Kanaema Stones were a powerful sort of object, true, but they were limited in that one regard, it seemed.

  
The question now, alas, was whether or not Fiya and the others should track down their families- the ones tied to those names tied to the Overdrive powers that had already passed on. Well, no, not whether they should do it at all, but whether they should do it now versus later, once they were once again properly in their original bodies.  
  
'Original.' Now there was a laugh. No, their 'original' bodies were long gone- he shook his head, and corrected himself.  
  
Until they were once again properly in their Kiramei Stone Bodies.  
  
And speaking of reincarnation, that Phoenix that had saved them... chances were high it was Miko's pet bird Ally, at this point. The bird had saved them many times, and then another one seemingly had frozen Korrag in stone? It made the most sense for the two to be one.   
  
Of course, Phoenixes weren't unique in that regard- even Crystalia had had a few Kiramei Stone Phoenixes in its time.  
  
 _'Ah, man,'_ Fiya blinked. _'Now I gotta wonder if Hakubo was in that vault or not?'_  
  
If that Mentor of the King's had been stored away in that vault, he'd probably been burried somewhere by one of Enter's goons by now.  
  
Well, hopefully they'd find him along with the rest of the Kanaema Stones.  
  
Atsuya floated out of the house a few moments later, sighing. "This is really going to be tiring if this lasts more than a day..." He floated up towards Fiya, who caught him in his arms. "How do you do this floating thing all the time?"  
  
"It just comes as naturally as flying did, I guess," Fiya said. "You're doing really good, though. It's amazing how fast you've all adapted."  
  
"I Suppose so..." Atsuya hummed.   
  
"Don't hesitate now, or you'll lose that precious sparkle," Fiya reminded him. "Remember when we first met? You didn't think you had it in you, but I saw that potential!"  
  
"That's true," Atsuya said. "If you hadn't encouraged me to fight, then everything would've gone bad really fast."  
  
"You've grown by leaps and bounds," Fiya said. "And even now, I'm sure you haven't given it your all yet!"  
  
"Eh? What do you mean by that?" Atsuya asked, a little shocked.  
  
"I mean, we're not at the end of this long road yet, not by a long shot!" Fiya grinned. "Can't say we've given it our all until we cross the finish line, right?"  
  
Atsuya considered it, and then laughed- sparkling. "You're right! We can give it our all every battle, but that's still not our total limit that we'll ever reach!"  
  
"Higher and higher, reaching for that bright future ahead of us," Fiya stared upwards. "Things may not be what any of us thought it was... and we Kiramei Stones may have wound up living a few more decades than we originally thought we did... but we're still not done yet. We're still fighting this same fight that we were a whole lifetime ago."  
  
"It's a little weird to think about," Atsuya said. "That you guys were in class with us twice over, some days."  
  
"Yeah, it's a shame we never met up to hang out before that day," Fiya said, a little wishfully. "I guess we've made up for lost time, though. Haven't we?"  
  
And then the Kiramei Changer chimed off.  
  
Atsuya hovered into the air while Fiya struck at it. "This is Red, what's the situation?"  
  


* * *

  
"RELOCATE! RELOCATE! RELOCATE!!" Relocation Jamen called out, blasting random people on Earth C as he wandered the streets. "Relocating the soul can bring about such a change of atmosphere!" He grinned, looking around.   
  
"That's Far Enough!" Shouted a voice--  
  
Relocation Jamen turned to look, and there were four Kiramagers running up- Jetta, Heliko, Mahha, and Shovellow--- Three of them managed to hold normal looking stances, though, Jetta...  
  
Jetta was kind of stuck wooshing around because, and I quote, "How do you stop running again!?"  
  
"Ararararah?" The Jamen asked, "So you could transform even like that?"  
  
"It's not like we haven't had the experience before," Heliko said simply, readying the Kiramei Shot- and then fired off a single blast in the Jamen's face.  
  
"OW!" He shouted- tanking the shot. "Home Security! ACTIVATE!"

[In came a bunch of Bechats wearing Security Guard Uniforms,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap6.png) saluting as they reached their assigned positions.  
  
"Alright! Let's show 'em our Kiramental!" Shovellow shouted- and charged in--- trying to fight with the wrong style entirely. "Woah! What!??" That is to say, Punching with heavy gauntlets that were not actually equipped. "Why am I not hitting them!" Bechats swarmed her.  
  
Tomo called in over the Morpher- "I'm not a brawler, Shovellow! I'm a sharp shooter!"  
  
"I don't know why I did that anyways!" Shovellow complained- then got thrown sideways by the Bechats.  
  
"HEEEELP!" Jetta shouted- wooshing by the Jamenshi. "I Can't Stop!!!"  
  
"How do you stop flying at speed, Jetta!?" Equius radioed over the morpher.  
  
"I'M A JET! I JUST TURN INTO A STONE!" Jetta then realized- "Oh! Right!" And then he tucked into a ball and rolled forwards to a halt- bowling through some Bechats that were aggressing towards Mahha.  
  
"Thanks!" Mahha said- rushing away... and promptly hiding under a counter and activating the sword's shield mode. _"KIRAMEI SHIELD!"_  
  
"Mahha! What are you doing!?" Harley shouted over the radio.  
  
"I won't sacrifice your body like I threw away mine!" Mahha shouted back, cowering away.  
  
"Mahha! Don't worry about that!!" Harley insisted, to no avail.  
  
The Jamenshi laughed, watching him run by. "Hahaha! Truly a best case scenario with that one! He can't adapt at all!"  
  
"WHY YOU---!" Heliko dashed in, closing in range with the Jamenshi- "Take thiiiiiiiis!" She punched forwards and smacked the Jamenshi in the face.   
  
"OW!" He flew backwards- smacking into a wall.  
  
"Nicely done, Heliko!" Nepeta appraised over the Morpher.  
  
"Yeah!" Heliko punched a fist into the air- and then suddenly spun in place. _"WAAH!_ **NO!** _STOP THAT, ME!"_  
  
"Hahah! Not so well adapted yourself, are you?" The Jamenshi laughed.  
  
"No, they're not," Garuza said, entering the arena.  
  
Okay, well, it was a street and not an arena, but it WAS outside of a sports arena, if that matters any.  
  
"Garuza!" Shovellow shouted as the Kiramagers regrouped.  
  
Garuza readied a blast on his sword and swung it at them.  
  
They took the blast and went flying to the ground- even Mahha got knocked out of cover by the strike.  
  
"So even the invincible Mashins are powerless in weak, fleshy bodies," Garuza laughed. "Relocation Jamen, finish them off."  
  
"I'll swap!" Relocation Jamen started approaching them in a swooshy, show-offy, taunty sort of way. "Them! To..!"  
  
"I WON'T LET YOU!" And then Fiya leaped into the battle, firing away at the Jamenshi.  
  
"KYAAAH!" he went flying.  
  
"Everyone, are you alright?" Fiya asked, checking on his team.  
  
"Fiya!" Jetta cried, arms still waggling through the air like wings.  
  
"We're doing mostly okay!" Heliko answered.  
  
"Not that Mostly isn't one hundred percent," Mahha said- surveying the suit for damage.   
  
"I'm getting too old for this," Shovellow whined.  
  
"Well, then, it's time to turn things around," Fiya declared.  
  
Garuza threw his hands into the air- "Nothing will change just because there's one more of you!" Bechats swarmed in, sans earlier costume. "You'll die regardless." he moved a hand towards the Kiramagers. "Get them."  
  
"BECHAAAAA!" The Bechats ran forwards- assaulting all the Kiramei stone Kiramagers in swarm.  
  
"BURNING HOT!" Fiya yelled- rushing forwards at speed- tackling the Bechats as he fought. "Even if there's one more!" He punched one in the face- several times actually- and then shot off at more Bechats. "It's never hopeless!"  
  
"What nonsense!" Garuza shouted back. "Meaningless platitudes!"  
  
"It's never hopeless as long as we have our Partners- our FRIENDS BACKING US UP!" Fiya shouted- firing off a shot that bounced off of a Bechat's face and rebounded straight into Garuza's chest- sending him flying backwards a few feet before he dug his feet into the ground and skid to a halt.  
  
"What the...!?" Garuza stared on.   
  
"Everyone, Now!" Fiya called out. 

* * *

"Jetta!" Equius called out suddenly from the morpher. "Can you hear me!?"  
  
"I do!" Jetta said- trying to swing his sword and not doing much of a good job against the Bechats. "But it's hard to fight like this for some reason!"  
  
"You can do it, Jetta!" Equius encouraged.   
  
"I can't take on so many of them at once, my body keeps fighting me on it!" Jetta answered, gaining some distance for a moment- but clearly panicked.  
  
"Don't panic. Control your breathing," Equius advised. "You can cut them down just the same no matter the size or form. Then- GO WITH A WOOSH!"  
  
Jetta did so- slowing his breathing down and tightening the grip on his sword.  
  
He raised the blade over his head...  
  
"A slow breath..." Jetta closed his eyes within his helmet...  
  
The Bechats charged.  
  
"JETTA SLICE!" Jetta rocketed forwards, stabbing, parrying, slashing-- SPARKLING-- He leaped into the air and SPUN as he sliced.   
  
He landed clear on the other end of the Bechats- [arms spread wide like wings as the Bechats fell over](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap7.png).  
  
Jetta whirled around and cheered. "I did it! I did it!! Aniki, how'd I do!? How'd I do!?"  
  
"That's my partner!" Equius cheered.  
  


* * *

  
Shovellow tried to climb away from some Bechats, but got pulled off of the wall she'd been trying to climb. "Ohhh COME ON!"  
  
She pointed at the Bechats with the Kiramei Shot, wildly, but not able to pull the trigger.  
  
"Don't hesitate!" Tomo advised. "You can sharp shoot like the best of us!"  
  
"But I keep fighting wrong!" Shovellow countered as Bechats tried to pin her.  
  
"You're just getting two sets of patterns mixed up, is all," Tomo answered. "Shoot from behind cover-- clear your mind and pretend you're in Kiramagein using Mazellan!"  
  
"I'll give it a try!" Shovellow said- and then broke away- "Here goes everything...!"  
  
The Bechats opened fire with their staves- and Shovellow climbed over a wall in record time.  
  
"Oh- Right! I forgot how nimble I used to be!" Shovellow giggled, [and then popped up from behind the wall.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap8.png) "BARRAGE SHOOTING!"

The Bechats got overwhelmed by the flury of precision strikes- save one- who returned fire. Shovellow ducked to dodge, then popped up and returned fire.  
  
"Hell yeah!" Tomo appraised. "Go Superstar of the Shovel World!"  
  


* * *

  
"Heliko!" Nepeta started as the girl failed a prepared strike due to her body whriling of its own accord. "Don't keep fighting the spinning! Use it as your signature technique!"  
  
"R-Right!!" Heliko ran down some stairs into a small plaza area- and quickly dodged some staff strikes from Bechats. "But- but- It's not how you fight!!"  
  
"But it's how your body wants to react," Nepeta coutinued. "If fighting against it is costing you in the fight, then don't fight it. Work with it!! Spin to your hearts content! Fight like Heliko, not Nepeta!"  
  
Heliko clenched her hands over her chest, took in a deep breath, then--- _"HURRICANE WHIIIIIIIIIIIRL!"_ She threw her arms out wide and spun rapidly- the Bechats weren't able to deal with it, especially as she moved fluidly from a spin into tackles- working in the rotational forces that she naturally wanted to use.  
  
Eventualy after several seconds of tussling, the Bechats were stuck infront of a staircase---  
  
"Have a nice trip!" She shouted- punching at them.  
  
And the Bechats went tumbling down the stairs.  
  
"Ehehehe! I did it!" Heliko clapped for herself, [and then struck a happy-go-lucky pose.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap9.png) "I gave them such a spanking!!"

"How emotional," Nepeta said, sounding so very proud.  
  


* * *

  
Mahha hid behind a pillar, knees to chest, arms around knees, head bowed towards arms and knees. "I can't fight like this... I'm such a coward..."  
  
"Mahha, you're not a coward!"   
  
Mahha looked up at the morpher as Harley spoke to him.  
  
"When you dash forward decisively like me, you're so brave!" Harley said. "If you don't want to hurt my body, then be faster than the ones who want to hurt us! Hit Them At Mach Speed!"  
  
"...At Mach Speed?" He asked, head snapping up fully, and then he stood, raising a hand to his chest. "I'll dash forwards at Mach Speed!" He struck one of Harley's rollcall poses.  
  
The Bechats came forwards, hearing the talking, and Mahha turned to look at them.  
  
"It is as they say," he chuckled, summoning the sword, and then kneeling into a ready to launch position. "Offense is the best defense."  
  
The Bechats charged in.  
  
Mahha took off with a burst and a flash of green energy.  
  
SLASH- the first one fell in slow motion.  
  
The second one tumbled as Mahha dodged under.  
  
A kick to the third, and then spin, slash, slash, kick, slash---  
  
The Bechats fell in short order- exploding.  
  
"Awesome!" Harley cheered. "That was Amazingly Cool!"  
  
["Thank you very much," Mahha said in response](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap10.png).  
  


* * *

"Everyone! You're on fire!" Fiya laughed as he struck down the Bechats opposing him.  
  
Then, the team reunited.  
  
"Whirling whirling FUN!" Heliko giggled as she ran up.  
  
"Alright!" Fiya said, rolling his shoulders. "Let's Do That!"  
  
"Uhoh!" The Jamenshi swallowed.  
  
"INSPIRATION SPARKLING!" Fiya started the usual poses... then diverged entirely.[ "KIRAMEI FIRE! Heheh."](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap11.png)

"GUIDED SHOOTING!" Shovellow similarly diverged from Tomo's poses for her own stance.[ "KIRAMEI SHOVEL! How'ya like me now? Eh?"](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap12.png)

"RUSH LIGHTNING!" Mahha likewise diverged from the usual poses at the end. ["KIRAMEI MACH!"](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap13.png)

"SHARPENED UNSTOPPABLE!" Jetta managed to swing through the early swooshy poses, then rolled with his arms wanting to snap outwards at the end. ["KIRAMEI JET!"](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap14.png)

"DEFT INCREDIBLE!" Heliko swam through the early pose, and then made a heart with her hands and held it over her chest. ["KIRAMEI HELI!"](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap15.png)

"ARRIVING IN A FLASH!" They leaped forwards as per usual. "THE ADVENTURERS REBORN AGAIN!"  
  
"MASHIN SENTAI!" Fiya called out.  
  
And then their new pose was VERY differently aligned from the usual Kiramager roll call.  
  
[ _ **"KIRAMAGER- MASHIN VERSION!"**_](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap16.png) They shouted as one.

* * *

"Everyone! You're so cool!" Atsuya praised them all. "Go Get them!"

* * *

  
"Burning Hot Hot Hot!!" Fiya called out.  
  
The Kiramagers ran in at speed.  
  
"WHIRLING CUT!" Heliko spun in, slashing at the Jamenshi.  
  
"JETTA SLICE!" Jetta rocketed in, dicing in with the sword, and then restraining the Jamenshi by the cape so-  
  
"GOOO!" Mahha slashed past, cutting at the Jamenshi.  
  
"HEAVE HO!" Shoevellow leaped into the air, firing away.  
  
And then Fiya came in with a kick, a slash, and a blast!!  
  
Garuza watched from afar. "Such simple praises give them that much power?"  
  
"A traitor like you wouldn't understand, Garuza," Harry said, walking into the area.  
  
"And what would you know?!" Garuza taunted.  
  
"Being acknoweldged by your friends, gives you an unbelievable power," Harry answered- then raised his morpher- ** __"SHINE!"__** \- "Kiramei Change!" Harry ran forwards. _**_"OH SHINE!"_**_  
  
Garuza and Kiramei Silver clashed weapons, traded punches and kicks...  
  
Garuza swung his sword, and got caught in Shiny Breaker's Claw mode.  
  
"Oh-!" Garuza didn't have time to finish the swear, dragged along as he was when he tried breaking free.  
  
"SHINING KICK!" Harry kicked Garuza away from his sword, and then threw said sword as far away as he could. "This is the end!" he tapped the charge button. **__"ONE BEAM CHARGE!"__**  
  
The energy drill formed...  
  
"NOT TODAY!" Garzua then unleashed a wave of Jamental- teleporting away under the cover of its darkness.  
  
"Coward," Harry said simply as the jamental cloud faded.  
  
"GAAH!" The Jamenshi stumbled in then, and Harry casually turned towards him, even as he asked, "Where did Lord Garuza go?"  
  
"He ran," Harry answered.  
  
"I'm alone?" The Jamenshi asked, pointing at himself.  
  
"You are," Harry nodded.  
  
"PREPARE YOURSELF!" Shovellow shouted as they surrounded the Jamenshi.  
  
["Uhh... are you all comfortable in your new homes?"](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap17.png) Relocation Jamen asked, staggaring backwards away from Harry with some shock.  
  


* * *

Kurantula's staff activated. "Full Power! GO, MORTGAGE DAGAMES!"  
  


* * *

* * *

  
In droped a double headed Jamenju- a house for one head, a bag of money for the other- both chained together around the neck.

The Kiramagers turned to stare upwards.  
  
"It's huge!" Jetta shouted the obvious.  
  
"Jamenju!" Fiya snapped.   
  
_"Nice timinggg...!"_ the Jamenshi slipped away in the chaos.  
  
Harry turned to Fiya, "Call Atsuya and the others. I'll deal with the Jamenshi."  
  
"Right," Fiya nodded, and raised the morpher. "Everyone! Up for a fight?"

  


"MASHIIIIIIIIIN!" Was the response- the five zords teleporting in and driving onto the scene.

"Tension maxed, Fiya!" Atsuya replied. "We're burning hot hot hot!"  
  
"They aren't skillfull, but watch my shoveling techniques!"[ Tomo chuckled.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/kiramei-mashinshovellow.png) "Heave Ho!"

"In Mahha's name, I'll finish the fight swiftly!" [Harley paraphrased her partner](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/kiramei-mashinmahha.png).

"My wings sparkle!" [Equius spun in the air.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/kiramei-mashinjetta.png) "LET'S WOOOOOOOSH!"

"I'll never forgive you, you absolute evil," [Nepeta said, quoting her partner.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/kiramei-mashinheliko.png) "It's Spanking Time!"

* * *

Watching from above on the Beltus, Gina frowned. "Do you think they can combine with those new bodies?"  
  
"Of course they can combine," Joey smirked.  
  


* * *

  
"Everyone, let's bring it together!" Fiya declared, patting his heart, and then throwing his hands out wide. "Combine our Sparkles! Let's Go!"  
  
"YEAH!" the other Mashin agreed.  
  
"MASHIN GATTAI!" Ten voices called as one.  
  
 _ **_"MASHIN GATTAI!"_**_  
  
"READY!" _**_"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"_**_  
  
"You guys are all awesome!" Fiya said, nearly brought to tears. "Let's charge full throttle with our Kiramental!"  
  
"Leave it to me!" Shovellow said, grabbing the wheel.  
  
"Of course," Mahha saluted.  
  
"LET'S GOOOO!" Jetta flapped his arms like wings.  
  
"Full Throttle, Full Throttle!" Heliko cheered.  
  
"Everyone, let's go!" Atsuya declared.   
  
Kiramagein ran forwards, slashing away at the Jamenju- then stabbing at it.  
  
The Jamenju retaliatied by firing an energy beam that wrapped Kiramagein up in chains.  
  
"Shit!! We got tied up in loans!!" Equius yelped.  
  


* * *

  
Harry and the Jamenshi dueled on the ground.  
  
As they did so, some Bechats appeared- one wearing a security uniform, the other not- and tried to restrain Harry from behind.  
  
Mid leap towards the Silver Kiramager, however-- "MASHIIIIN!" --a familiar purple gemstone flew forwards and crashed into them- growing in size during the impact to send them flying further away.  
  
"GAH! What's that!?" Relocation Jamenshi asked- pointing in shock as Carry transformed into a shield and Harry caught her. "Another Mashin!?"  
  
"Just try me, mean house!" Carry shouted.  
  
"Fine! I will! RELOCATION BEAAAAAAM!" The Jamenshi fired off his beam of energy...  
  
"REFLECTING!" Carry's shield surface turned silver and reflective- _**_"KIRAMEI SHIELD!"_**_ -and the energy beam bounced off, split in two directions.  
  
One struck the two Bechats that were just recovering from being thrown.   
  
The other hit the Jamenshi right in his own smug face.  
  
 _"GYAAAAAAHHHH....becha?"/"BECHAAAa-a-aahhaha? Am I a Bechat again!?"_  
  
Needless to say, the two Bechats and the Jamenshi were suddenly very confused.

* * *

"BURNING HOTTER STILL!" Fiya shouted- and the Kiramei Stones within their partner's bodies roared- channeling their kiramental forwards...  
  
Kiramagein tore the chains apart moments later.  
  
[Jetta swung- and Equius struck](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap19.png).

Shovellow attacked- and Tomo punched.  
  
Fiya went next- and Atsuya delivered the kick.  
  
"Let's spank 'im!" Heliko cheered.  
  
"Let's," Mahha agreed.  
  
"THIS IS THE END!" all ten shouted as one.  
  
Kiramagein struck its pose- readying the sword as energy channeled through them with sparkles galore.  
  
 _ **"KIRAMEI DYNAMIC!"**_  
  
The Mortgage Dagames was hit down the middle between the necks- the chains shattered- and the Jamenju Exploded.

**__"CHECKMAGE!"__ **

* * *

_**_"ONE BEAM CHARGE!"_**_  
  
"SHINING BEAM ATTACK!" Harry shouted- firing off Shiny Breaker's energy drill straight at its target.  
  
The drill rocketed down the road and launched up the ramp- into the air where it dived down and crashed into the Jamenshi's body.  
  
"BECHAAAAAAA!" The Bechat in the Jamenshi's body cried out before exploding.  
  
 _ **_"ONE JOB DONE!"_**_  
  
Harry relaxed his pose as the smoke began to clear, barely noticing as his body flashed briefly with silver energy, as if he, too, had been subtly affected by the first swap beam in some way. "That was Weird," he said, shaking off the after effects.  
  
"I'll just... sneak out to-" The Jamenshi in the Bechat's body paused- and then shrieked as sparks welled up across his body as THAT swap was attempted to be undone, only to find that it wouldn't work. "Oh no!"  
  
"OH YES!" and then Carry rammed into him in her truck form- sending the Bechat flying through the air where he then exploded a moment later because the soul swap effect couldn't undo itself given he wasn't in his original body anymore.   
  


* * *

  
Elsewhere in the city, souls were swapped back to where they belonged, and towering over head, [Kiramagein flashed with energy as the souls of the Kiramagers and Mashin were put back where they belonged](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage18-swap21.png).

"I'm back in my body!" Atsuya said, gazing at his hands.   
  
The Kiramagers cheered.  
  
"Good grief," Fiya sighed as Kiramagein relaxed. "That was one strange day."  
  


* * *

  
Back on the Beltus, in orbit over Earth C, the Kiramagers and their partner Kiramei Stones stood around the center table as Carry's smaller gemstone form sat inside the shattered remnants of the Sub-in.  
  
"Here we go..." Carry started... _**"Eurekaiiiiiiiiiiiiing!!!"** _She shouted- sparkling brightly...  
  
And then the sub-in fragments pulsed with light, hovered into the air, and orbited for a moment...  
  
"How Pretty...!" Heliko gasped.  
  
"Moment of truth," Harry said, and then...  
  
The shard fragments shot inwards, merging with Carry's stone body properly, and then with a flash of the expected Sub-in transformation light effects...   
  
Carry's half-human half alternian self sat there on the table in place of her gemstone form.  
  
Her eyes snapped open, and she looked herself over, a smile forming small, and then growing wider by the second. "It worked...! It WORKED!" She cheered, throwing her arms into the air, and then leaping to hug Nepeta and Atsuya as they were the closest.   
  
After a while, Harry backed away from the group, and sat down on a chair next to Esprez's stone.  
  
"Everyone's sparkling brightly," Esprez said, a little sadly.   
  
"Yeah," Harry nodded.   
  
"It must be nice, to have someone to celebrate with like that," Esprez said.  
  
"Don't worry," Harry put a hand ontop of the white stone, and patted once. "I'm sure Jouki will wake up sooner or later."  
  
They both looked out the window at the idle, inactive Aqua Stone resting in the Zord Bay.  
  


* * *

  
 _ **KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!**_  
  
As the Kiramagers and the Kiramei Stones celebrated- everyone sparkling brightly, Gina approached Harry, who stood off to the side, watching.  
  
"Impressive work, Mr. Anderson," Gina appraised. "But how did you know that would work?"  
  
"When we were training in the Zord Bay, I realized that my transformation ability came from an infusion of foreign Kiramei Stone to my body. I am my own partner."  
  
Harry explained. "Because of that, I then realized that because my stone form is made up of all the tiny fragments in my body growing outwards and becoming one... Carry couldn't exactly shatter her very body to accomplish the same. But if she absorbed the Sub-In fragments...?"  
  
"She could hone in to the same technique you're using to project the stone body, but reverse the thematics of it," Gina nodded. "Well thought out."  
  


* * *

  
 _ **NEXT KIRAMAGER!**_  
  
"Dance like your lives depend on it!" The Jamenshi of the day shouted.  
  
"What does a Glue themed Jamenshi have anything to do with Music!?" Nepeta demanded to know.  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_ Tomo's Morpher shouted as they struck it.  
  
"Nepeta! Let's dance!" Atsuya declared.  
  
"Right!" Nepeta agreed.  
  
 **NEXT EPISODE: 19: "Just learning how to twist and shout." (Glued to the Dancefloor!)**  
  
"Let's Sparkle Together!" Atsuya and Nepeta called out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SOOOO YEAH. Incase it wasn't abundantly clear by those series of oneshot Intermissions last act... We now know what became of the Original Overdrive rangers. Turns out they were here this entire time! It's probably hard to believe, but I've had this twist building in the back of my mind since early to mid first act. Overdrive's Zord configurations are shockingly similar to Kiramagers in places. It's one of those parallels that's been nagging at me since I started adapting the fic, and so... Yeah. Here we are, finally.  
> \---  
> So, why didn't they start remembering sooner? The same way the Sub-in was handling the motion-to-motion smoothing over (IE: Heliko didn't get stuck spinning around a lot, and Jetta didn't get his arms stuck in the air), it was also handling a bit of suppression of past life memories in the fact that those bodies weren't organic flesh and blood like they'd once been. Spirits from Stone migrating to Flesh was all that was needed to get some of the old memories kickstarted again, really. Once they had the nudge of memories, it all started coming back to them.
> 
> Speaking of things I've had planned- Carry being able to transform without the crutch of the sub-in as a separate tool. Whether I'd destroyed the Sub-in or not to require that was up for debate... until this episode came along canonically. LOL.
> 
> \---
> 
> SO. YEAH. This episode was one of those "OH GOD WHAT" moments of "Did I really predict the 'Mashin become their partners' plot?" with how I handled the Sub-In. Shattering it also was a prerequisite to this episode, as I couldn't just have the Kiramagers turn back into their human selves during this. 
> 
> As of yet, the show has yet to have Blue use Jetta as a sword, though Yellow has used Shovellow as a hammer, so I'll call half right on that, I guess.
> 
> \---
> 
> And as far as set up goes, yes, there is a surprising amount of plot setup for this Act in what was originally a goofy partner relationship episode.
> 
> \---  
> Next Chapter: MINISODE: Another Round of Chess. See ya sunday or monday for the next meta chapter.


	4. INTERMISSION: Another Round of Chess.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, you're getting this one *Way* early. >>; But hey, it's with good reason. See End Notes For That!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Dirk Strider.  
> Meta talk.  
> Impossible floating objects.  
> Snowfall.

**EARTH DATE: NOVEMBER 30TH, 2012.**  
  
Snow fell over Earth C's various cities, depending on location.  
  
A far away town atop the mountains was one of them, and there, in a snow covered park, a bundled up Dirk Strider sat across from his traveling chess opponent once more.  
  
"So is this going to be the recurring thing this act?" Dirk asked.  
  
"Not sure yet," The Traveler replied, voice muffled slightly by the scarf wrapped around their face for warmth, as they set up the board.   
  
"Any reason we're doing this in the Snow instead of, I don't know, in a cafe, or somewhere warm for that matter?" Dirk asked.  
  
"I wanted the change of scenery," The Traveler answered. "And I know someone who would have loved to see it snow in the mountains like this, again. One last time, at least." They smiled beneath the scarf, eyes crinkling exaggeratedly. "Also, consider it me formally putting in my request for a snow filled Winter this year, despite my own loathing towards overly snowy winters. We could use the water, to be honest."  
  
"Speaking of the winter season," Dirk said, eyeing the now completed board. "What are your plans for the Christmas Episode?"  
  
"The Christmas Episode?" The Traveler answered. "I suppose it matters how fast the rest of this act burns through the month of December..." They considered for a moment, then said, "If absolutely necessary, I may just make it be the Safe Bet, and make any actual Christmas Episode be a time travel episode on top of whatever episode does fall on the date."  
  
"...The 'Safe Bet'?" Dirk groaned. "That's a fucking pun about something isn't it?"  
  
The Traveler laughed, a hearty laugh, one full of amusement at an obvious reaction to an obvious joke.   
  
"You sure love your shitty dad puns, don't you?" Dirk asked, narrowing his eyes behind his pointy, pointy Zabyun like shades.   
  
"What can I say? Kyoryu Blue rubbed off on me." The Traveler shrugged, and started toying with a small, blue painted, silver battery with an obvious dinosaur motif to it- having summoned the danged thing out of their sylladex. "So. Are you going first, or should I?" They started clicking at the small button on the battery as something of a stress relief. The small toy started flicking between its four sides in rapid fashion.  
  
"Fine," Dirk made the opening move. "You seem... better after our last chat."  
  
"It's not been that long from either of our perspectives," the Traveler gave a shrug, and made a counter move. "I just had a good dinner and feel... contentedly full. A few road bumps this morning, but. Eh. Internet Griefers, what can you do?"  
  
Dirk made his counter move. "Maybe move us inside where it's warm? I'm already freezing my fingers off."  
  
"Fiiine." The traveler snapped their fingers, and instantly, the two of them, plus their chess board, were relocated inside of a ski lodge cafe. Nobody noticed the sudden translocation, or paid either of them any mind. A roaring fire burned nearby. A sign overhead said "The Snowy Veil."   
  
Dirk eyed the obvious snow covered meteor imagery with mild contempt for a moment, then said, "Good enough."  
  
The Traveler smiled, and made the next move on the board. "So I was wanting to ask you about what you thought about custom paint jobs on Model Kits?"  
  
"Seriously?" Dirk asked. "All of this just for that?"  
  
"To be honest it was either that, or I talk to you about Kamen Rider: Zero-One," The Traveler answered, eyeing him over the scarf.  
  
"The AI Singularity Kamen Rider season? You wound me, Traveler, if you think I don't want to talk about that!" Dirk said, making his counter move.  
  
Alas, that conversation, a discussion on A.I Sentience. Rights, went on for far longer and for far too many words that would push this whole self indulgence into full on chapter territory and NOT intermission territory.

* * *

Davis Strider and Karkat Vantas stared at the floating silver cube that was idly giving off small sparks of crimson time energy.  
  
"And you're saying that- Thing-?" Karkat pointed at the very tiny cube, and its glimmering etched surfaces- "Came out of a crystal that was powering a Literal Reset Button??"  
  
Tomo Strider gave a nod, holding up said power crystal. "Yep."  
  
"And it's floating," Davis stated the obvious.  
  
"Concerningly so," Tomo nodded, glancing at Shovellow over their shoulder.  
  
"Yep," Shovellow agreed.  
  
"That's also after it fell OUT of the Crystal like the solid object was ACTUALLY made of water, even though neither object should be capable of phasing in and out of reality like that unless it was specifically out of phase with everything around it?" Karkat then asked.  
  
"If either were made of Kiramei Stone it might be possible," Shovellow mused. "But..."  
  
"This isn't a Kiramei Stone," Tomo tossed Karkat the power crystal, who caught it with ease. "It's a bog-standard Power Crystal."  
  
"And Silver Kiramei Stone's dont... feel like that," Shovellow said, darting towards the floating silver cube as if it were something anathetical to her very existence.  
  
"It's floating," Davis said, eyeing the floating yellow gemstone.   
  
"And sparking," Shovellow pointed out the obvious.  
  
"Well if it's not Kiramei Stone, then what is it?" Karkat asked, eyeing the tiny, silver, etched cube that was sparking with crimson time energy as it floated in the air.  
  
"I was hoping you'd tell me that?" Tomo offered with a shrug.  
  
Karkat and Davis looked at eachother, then back to Tomo.  
  
"How do we even touch it?" Davis asked.  
  
"Oh, that's easy," Tomo coughed, then said aloud, "Release."  
  
The tiny, floating, silver cube that sparked crimson ceased floating and sparking in that instant- dropping down through the air as Gravity took hold once more.  
  
Tomo caught it mid fall, and held the object out. "Here."  
  
"...Should I Dare ask how you figured that out?" Karkat asked, taking the cube.  
  
"Probably not," Tomo answered simply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I've got good news. I've finished this whole act. Like. Entirely. All chapters written. Plot arc written out. Every last moment of this Act is written out and HOO. Is it a Doozy.
> 
> I'm not sure exactly what my upload schedule is going to be for this act going forwards but it's PROBABLY going to be a lot more frequent than has been happening the last act. 
> 
> What happens when I run out? Well, honestly I'm probably going to take a break from writing this fic while uploading and focus a bit on that Harry Potter/Myst verse crossover fic idea that's been nagging at me. Rowan's going off in a unique direction different from what I've had planned, so it'll be fun, like exploring two different branches of the same concept with different execution behind each bit. 
> 
> In the mean time, I'll be waiting on Kiramager episodes to air through more of the season. Waiting to get to the point I did before writing through this act definitely helped me get a solid grip on where I wanted this act to go, story wise, so I'm going to do the same thing and wait to see where it all goes so I'm not fumbling the act pacing like I did A8A2 by writing without having any idea where the story was going.
> 
> So yeah. Idk when the next chapter will be going up, but- well. 
> 
> The Next Chapter will be: MSK: 01X19: "Just learning how to twist and shout." (Glued to the Dance Floor!)
> 
> I'll see you all then.


	5. MSK: 01X19: "Just learning how to twist and shout." (Glued to the Dance Floor!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tomo experiments with the Reset Button; The Robot Ninjas are out for blood; Nepeta and Atsuya get glued together by the hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Time Loops.  
> Fatal Headshot.   
> Repetitive Text.  
> Music Sequence w/ suggestive lyrics.  
> Suggestive Glue Uses.  
> Minor levels of Picture Embedding/Linking.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 1ST, 2012.**

Saturday Morning on New Athos had already been progressing by several hours. Enough time, at any rate, that the morning chores were done and outside of the Jurul family house...  
  
Atsuya and Nepeta were practicing dancing to some pre-recorded music playing off of an old fashioned record player.   
  
Yes, vinyl, black hued with a red sticker in the center, spinning along beneath a speaker with a needle tracing along the surface. Retro and classic and one would be mistaken for it being a surviving antique from Earth if not for the fact that the sides of the box itself were engraved with ancient Athosian writings and pictures.  
  
The record player and the record itself had been recovered from a shop on Old Athos, miraculously intact despite the thousands of years of abandonment. All it required was a new power source and a little polish, and...  
  
And then the music skipped a beat as the record skipped as records are known to do, and Atsuya tripped over his own feet and fell flat on his back, Nepeta being pulled along for the ride, and landing ontop of him in the same impact.  
  
They lay there for a moment, staring at eachother, their noses mere centimeters from eachother, before they started laughing.  
  
"Well, that was fun," Nepeta said after they'd calmed down a few moments later.  
  
"It was," Atsuya nodded.   
  
They got up and Atsuya reset the record player.   
  
"Who knew that old melody had a Pop remix back who knows how long ago?" Nepeta asked.  
  
"It's certainly something, alright," Atsuya nodded. "The Winter Festival ought to be really fun with this discovery!"  
  
Nepeta grinned. "As long as the record doesn't skip off that beat, that is."  
  
"Yeah," Atsuya nodded, and the two fell silent after a moment.  
  
"So..." Nepeta began. "Speaking of the festival..."  
  
"As long as no monster attacks come up," Atsuya said, "my parents already gave me the day off to enjoy it, so.. we're clear to go!" He gave a thumbs up.  
  
"Let's hope all the Monster Attacks get their evil worked out for the season by then," Nepeta laughed.  
  


* * *

  
Saturday Morning on Atlantis bloomed on yet another alien world- and as lime green sunlight filtered in past the neon green clouds into the bedroom of one Tomo Strider... a work project was being completed.  
  
"And... there," Tomo said, making sure the last of the wiring inside their Kiramei Changer was secured. "I think we're done."  
  
Remnants of the Reset Button lay scattered across the table, framing the modified Kiramei Changer's internals perfectly. Next to the central chunk of Kiramei Stone- sandwiched between the KI Server Transmitter and the Sylladex cartridge- was a small cube engraved with lines.  
  
The critical component salvaged from the Reset Button.  
  
"Only one way to find out," Shovellow said, eyeing the device from the counter.   
  
"Right," Tomo nodded, and took the dislodged, yet still connected via wire, faceplate to the changer, and snapped it back into place.  
  
The Kiramei Changer went back onto their wrist. "Time to put it all through its paces."  
  
 ** _Tap. BING! _"KIRAMEI GO! KI! RA! MEI!"__**  
  
"Kiramei Change," Tomo struck the wheel, and morphed as per usual.   
  
_**_"LET'S SPARKLE!"_**_  
  
"Good," Tomo said examining their suit in the mirror. "I didn't fuck _**That** _up." They looked to Shovellow, and a sylladex test was performed. Shovellow went in and came out fine. Tapping the weapon call button brought out the sword and blaster fine...  
  
"Let's test the new function," Tomo said. "Think of a question, Shovellow."  
  
"Alright, thought of."  
  
Tomo took a breath, then tapped the new, hidden button they'd added to the screen.  
  
 _ **BING!**_ The Morpher chimed as expected... but said nothing.  
  
Tomo steeled themself, then said, "One Ohm of Pressure."  
  
The Morpher started chanting a familiar melody- a song file that Harry's Kiramei Changer played when he was going into his Kiramei Stone form, complete with "Yahoo!"s.  
  
Tomo struck the wheel, and the music finished off, and the Morpher chimed out with its usual voice, but a new phrase:

 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
"Ask me the question," Tomo said.  
  
"What's the 'one ohm of pressure' thing for?" Shovellow asked.  
  
Tomo nodded, then tapped the hidden button again, immediately followed by striking the wheel.  
  
 _ **_"REIN-!"_**_  
  
 _ **FWASH!**_  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
"The 'One Ohm' thing is like a Morph Call-" Tomo answered Shovellow. "Something that I should never- EVER say unless I'm deliberately activating the reset function."   
  
"It worked!" Shovellow gasped.  
  
"That it did," Tomo looked to the Morpher, tapped the button, and said, "Pressure Release." Then, they struck the wheel.  
  
The Morpher called out a simple _**_"OH! EXCELLENT!"_**_ and then went silent.  
  
"Now," Tomo demorphed, and smiled at their partner. "Let's hope we NEVER have to use that again."  
  
At that remark- The Kiramei Changer cried out with the alert of an incoming call.  
  
"At least we know that works too!" Shovellow said.  
  
"At least there's that," Tomo rolled their eyes, and struck at the wheel.

* * *

**_"When People Shine!" Mashin Fiya narrated, "Miracles are Born!"_ **   
  
**_"Kiramental!" He continued. "The proof of Warriors who can Change the Future!"_ **   
  
**_"Tension Maxed!" he shouted- "KIRAMEI GO!!!"_ **

[ **_MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER_ ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

Snow fell in the December air around Earth C... but this one town wasn't one of them, despite its name.  
  
Cannedsnow was very much canned, as many of Earth C's buildings were can shaped, but there wasn't a lick of snow anywhere.  
  
Still, despite this, the Overdrive team were investigating an area the Seers had predicted imminent assault by the enemy Ninja Storm team.  
  
"I haven't seen Ridley in days," Kanaya was saying as the team patrolled down a street. "So I went to the address she had listed for her residence on the Cavern's Application Forms, and it was an empty lot!"  
  
"What? Seriously?" Tavvy asked.  
  
"Seriously," Kanaya nodded. "What's weirder is I know I've been to that place before, and there was a house there."

"Ah, geeze," June grimaced. "I hope it's not more 'erased out of existence' garbage."  
  
That's when they heard the sound of music suddenly start playing. Loudly. So too did people start screaming.  
  
The Overdrives ran towards the scene, and found several people with... a strange, green sitcky slime like substance covering their feet and being forced to dance by it.  
  
There were the Evil Ninja Storm Rangers, too... [Along with a Jamenshi with a Glue themes mask,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage19-gluefloor1.png) holding a boombox in hand that was playing the loud music.

"Ah, just who we were hoping to see," the fake Red Ranger said.  
  
"And just who I was hoping to see," June took a step forwards, morpher at the ready. _**"OVERDRIVE--!"**_  
  
"NOPPE!" The Glue Jamenshi fired off a burst of green gloop at the Overdrives- and Kanaya dove in to pull June out of the line of fire.  
  
 _ **"-ACCELERATE!!"**_ Still, the Morpher wheel striking the ground was enough to trigger the morph, and June was suited up a moment later.  
  
Kanaya and June looked over at their team- who had also scattered, dodging the glue blast.  
  
"Everyone, Suit up!" Sally ordered.  
  
Everyone that hadn't already morphed readied their Morphers- _ **"OVERDRIVE, ACCELERATE!"**_  
  
"What a shame you didn't get any of them, Gluefloor," The Green Samurai stated, strolling forwards with his weapon at the ready. "I suppose we'll just have to finish the job without the distraction!"  
  
That was when an energy shot fired out and struck the boombox- shutting it off. All the people being forced to dance suddenly stopped, and ran away as quickly as possible.  
  
Everyone turned to look to see the Kiramagers, already suited up, standing on a nearby rooftop.  
  
"Arriving in a Flash! Dispatching Evil with a blast!" The six Kiramagers called out.  
  
"Mashin Sentai!" Atsuya called out.  
  
"KIRAMAGER!" They struck their poses, then leaped off of the rooftop, joining the Overdrives in the field.  
  
"Oh, who invited them!?" Ridley asked, annoyed- though she was disguising her voice behind the Ninja Storm Blue Ranger's helmet.   
  
"Not me," Crimson Thunder said.  
  
"Gluefloor, Kelzaks, Bechats," Navy Thunder snapped his fingers- summoning Bechats and Kelzaks. "Go get the Kiramagers."   
  
"Yes Sir!" The Jamenshi declared, running towards the Kiramagers with the Bechats and Kelzaks- rapidly drawing them away from the battle.  
  
The Red Ninja continued, "Our beef is with the Overdrives."  
  
"Specifically, Mercury," Ridley rolled her shoulders, and leveled her gaze at Zahra- clad in the Overdrive Silver/Mercury suit.  
  
"Uh... what beef is that exactly?" Zahra asked, confused.  
  
"You're **_wearing it_** ," Ridley said- then launched forwards in a streak of ninja speed that-

 _ **_"KIRAMEI SHOT!"_**_  
  
A blast struck the ground right in her path, forcing her to stop, and roll aside. And then again. And Again.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL!?" Ridley shouted- turning to look.  
  
Kiramei Yellow- in the midst of fending off Bechats, was casually firing shots that not only were blasting Bechats, but the stray shots were specifically seeming to ricochet around and hit directly in her path.   
  
"Hooyah!" Tomo shouted- firing a point blank shot into a Bechat's mask that rebounded and went flying straight at Ridley- who drew her sword and deflected it away...  
  
"GYAH!!"  
  
And it slammed face first into the Air Ninja Red Ranger- staggering backwards with a cracked helmet visor.  
  
"How the-!?" Navy Thunder shouted- and then another of Tomo's rebounding shots blasted at his feet.  
  
"Retreat!!" Crimson Thunder shouted, grabbing the red Ranger off the ground as another rebounded shot nearly hit his own head- scraping by the right side of his helmet by centimeters.  
  
The Ninja team quickly absconded away- and the Overdrives, confused by the sudden retreat, turned their attention towards the remaining Kelzaks and Bechats.  
Seeing his supposed allies retreating so suddenly, the Glue themed Jamenshi yelped as Atsuya and Nepeta tried to cut the tip of his mask's glue spout off.   
  
"Take This!" He started to aim to fire another glue shot at them---  
  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI CHARGE!"_**_  
  
\--And then one of Tomo's well aimed shots bounced off of a Kelzak's shoulder, flew upwards, hit a random street sign, and rebounded in at exactly the right angle to jam itself into the Jamenshi's glue spout.  
  
With a not at all well fired spurt of green goop- the Jamenshi suddenly realized things had gone bad in a hurry.  
  
"Oh No!" He shouted. "I'm jammed!" And then he turned and ran, teleporting away before anyone could react.  
  
"What the-!?" Tomo started, surprised. "That's new..."  
  
Soon, though, the Bechats and Kelzaks were defeated, and as the Kiramagers and Overdrives Demorphed, Tomo added an extra step, citing "Pressure Release" and striking their morpher.  
  
 _ **_"OH! EXCELLENT!"_** _the morpher chimed.  
  
"What the heck was that?" Harry asked, nudging Tomo in the right shoulder with the back side of his left hand. "Your morpher sounds like mine now!"  
  
"Not here," Tomo shook their head. "Let's find somewhere private."  
  
"Sounds good to me," Nepeta said, reaching over and grabbing Atsuya's free left hand with her right.  
  
There was a suspicious squelch sound, and everyone paused.  
  
"Eh?" Atsuya blinked, and they examined their hands.  
  
By sheer coincidence, that last glue splatter had flown out and struck Nepeta's Right hand, and Atsuya's left. And when Glue met Glue...  
  
Atsuya and Nepeta tried to pull their hands apart, but found they couldn't.  
  
"...We're stuck...!" Nepeta said quietly.   
  


* * *

  
Garuza, Lothor, and Kurantula watched a video feed as the Jamenshi tried to pry the stray Kiramei Bullet Disk out of his mask's glue spout.  
  
"...So that was eeriely familiar, right?" Kurantula asked. "That's not just me feeling that, right?"  
  
"If you mean that's the second time in a row Kiramei Yellow has miraculously out performed everyone on the field pulling off a flawless victory?" Garuza asked.   
  
"I think that's what he means, yes," Lothor said.  
  
"Then yes," Garuza answered Kurantula's question.  
  
"Reset Button Jamen gave Kiramei Yellow his Reset Button!" Kurantula snarled. "I suppose it was too much to ask they never use it against us!"  
  
"This is going to make beating them harder," Lothor said as the NInja Rangers entered the old Beating Up Enter Planning Room- now repurposed as Kurantula and Garuza and Lothor's teamup-to-do-evil-things room- sans the Red Ranger. "What? Where's Red?" He asked.  
  
"That shot broke clean through his helmet visor," Ridley said, removing her helmet. "The thing didn't stop til it hit the back of the helmet."  
  
Crimson Thunder deposited a detached robotic head onto the table- a clear, rectangular notch carved clean through it from end to end between the dimmed, crimson LED eyes.  
  
"So now we're down two Ninja Rangers," Lothor grimaced.  
  
"To be fair, we were earnestly trying to kill them today, before Kiramei Yellow time looped us again," Garuza remarked. "When it's Kill or Be Killed..."  
  
"Still, that kind of precision shot..." Kurantula shuddered. "How many times did we almost win today?"  
  


* * *

"Fifteen," Tomo answered. "It took me fifteen tries to get me to push them to retreat that fast without anyone getting hurt."  
  
"Next time," Atsuya said, "we're NOT letting you do that alone."  
  
"Definitely," Nepeta nodded.  
  
The Kiramagers and Overdrives were gathered in the Beltus' Kiramager Lounge, as Gina Kae ran a scanner over the glue binding Nepeta and Atsuya's hands together.  
Gina, casually, and slightly coldly, said, "You get extra credit for successfully hotwiring your Morpher, Strider, but you also get that credit removed for modifying your Morpher without notifying me first. Net Zero Gain/Loss Average."  
  
"Fair enough," Tomo winced. "I wasn't planning on using it again today anyways. Not after I made sure everything worked right. Just... I had a bad feeling i'd need it."  
  
"Fifteen Times where those Ninjas tried to kill us..." Tavvy said quietly. "And succeeded?"  
  
"Forget net averages," Vrissy said, "I know I'm buying you Lunch today, Strider. You saved our lives with that."  
  
Harley nodded. "I'll pitch in for dinner, too."  
  
"Guys..." Tomo shook their head. "Thanks, but I'm not sure how often we'll be able to abuse this to succeed. The badguys will probably figure it out quick enough," they frowned. "I mean, it is their tech I repurposed, _I think."_  
  
"You think?" Equius asked.  
  
"The thing is," Tomo said, "the thing that powered the Reset Button? It wasn't the power crystal running it. It was a small, etched cube burried inside the stone."  
  
"The weird thing is that it didn't want to be in there, either," Shovellow remarked, hovering over Tomo's shoulder. "Once we knew it was there, it was like the rest of the power crystal turned to liquid and the thing just slipped out!"  
  
"Without the cube, the power crystal just made the button buzz in error," Shovellow added. "But with the cube alone and NO power crystal at all? It still worked!"  
  
"Did you run a chemical analysis of it?" Gina asked, moving away from the glue analysis.  
  
"Of course I did," Tomo answered. "I even had Karkat and Dad take a look at it. Get this- the thing's a solid chunk of **_Pure Silver Ore!_** "  
  
"Silver?" Harley asked. "That shouldn't be able to power anything at all."  
  
"Maybe the runes carved onto it?" Equius offered.  
  
"So without knowing anything else, the first thing you decided to do was hotwire it into your Morpher," Zahra gave a small smirk.   
  
"Not first thing, but... sorta?" Tomo shrugged. "I managed to get it to create and release save points, so atleast I can stop the loops whenever I want. And if I forget to end a loop, it automatically deletes the save point after 24 hours."  
  
"I'm glad you at least thought out the mechanics of it," Gina said, "but please don't do any more solo loops without express permission first. We have enough means of time travel as it is in this timeline, we don't need to add any more."  
  
Tomo nodded. "Fair enough."  
  
"Still," Atsuya smiled, a little wistfully. "Maybe next time, if we're using it in battle, hold off ending the loop until we know the Jamenshi's defeated?" He held up his hand, bound to Nepeta's, and Tomo hung their head.  
  
"Yeah. That's my bad." Tomo agreed.  
  


* * *

  
"So... what do we do if they're abusing a time loop like that?" Kurantula asked.  
  
"The answer's simple," Lothor said. "For today? Nothing different. There's nothing we can do about it. Not today."  
  
"As much as it pains me to admit it," Garuza said, "this much is true." He tapped at a screen's keyboard, bringing up a visual of the four Kanaema Stones. "Tomorrow, on the other hand..."  
  
"Tomorrow's another day," Lothor smirked. "And tomorrow's also when one of these little wish granting beauties crash lands for us."  
  
"Wish granting...?" Kurantula trailed off. "You mean--!?" He stopped in shock.  
  
"Exactly," Garuza nodded.  
  


* * *

  
"GYAAH! Finally!" Gluefloor Jamenshi snapped as he got the disk out of his mask's glue spout. He grabbed the cap and put it back on. "Time to go glue this entire city's feet to the dance floor!"  
  


* * *

  
Alarms sounded in the Beltus- and Gina brought up a hologram. "The Ninjas and Kelzaks are backing up the Glue Jamenshi and Bechats again," she reported. "Sector E-93 of Cannedsnow."  
  
"Look!" June pointed. "The Red Ranger's missing."  
  
"I guess my parting shot did more damage than I thought," Tomo frowned, conflicted on how to feel about that.  
  
"And no doubt they're going to be just as Murderous as last time," Equius said. "If not more so."  
  
"Well." Tomo held out their Morpher. "Shall we give this a try, then?"  
  
There were nods from the Kiramagers, and Overdrives.  
  
"Before you activate anything, let's impose a limit," Gina said. "Too many loops in a row where the battle goes wrong, and you spend a loop here so we all can hash out a plan. Also, we shouldn't try overloading the device with everyone, just in-case there's a limit."  
  
"Every Five loops," Atsuya said. "If we can't beat it in five, we plan."  
  
Tomo held out their left arm, and said, "Anyone who wants to loop, place your hand on mine. I think that should let this work."  
  
Atsuya and Harley did so immediately, and Nepeta said- "I'll not, but since I'm holding onto Atsuya, it might work anyways."  
  
"A good experimental variable," Gina nodded.   
  
"I'll volunteer," Sally held a hand out.   
  
"Same," Vrissy agreed.  
  
"Definitely," June added her hand to the stack.   
  
"We'll stop here," Gina said. "This should give us a good sample size."  
  
"Alright then," Tomo said, and tapped the button on their Morpher. "One Ohm of Pressure."  
  


* * *

  
Two teams of rangers approached the scene.  
  
"Oh, look, the Rangers are back," Ridley said. "Gluefloor!" She snapped her fingers.   
  
"With pleasure!" The Jamenshi pressed a play button on the repaired boom box- and Atsuya and Nepeta suddenly found themselves dancing- dancing to very un duet-able music at that- and unable to fight.  
  
"Tomo! Reset!" Atsuya declared as the music tried to tear him and Nepeta apart in different directions.  
  
"Right!" Tomo struck their morpher.  
  
 _ **_"REIN-!"_**_  
  
 _ **FWASH!**_  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
"Now then," Gina started, "you should-"  
  
"It's not going to work as long as there's glue on our hands," Atsuya said. "It just made us start dancing to the wrong beat and it almost tore our arms off."  
  
"I remember that," Nepeta said, frowning. "Somehow, at any rate."  
  
"We need to take out that boom box," Tomo said.

* * *

Two teams of rangers approached the scene, and the Boom box did indeed get taken out...  
  
But the Ninjas were expecting that.  
  
"Oh, look, the Rangers are back," Ridley said. "And they took out our boombox? Oh what a shame. Too bad we already hacked into the city's speaker system!" And with that announcement- new music- even more violent than before- began playing out.  
  
"TOMO!" Nepeta shouted voice straining as she tried to fight back against her own arm being torn out of its socket.  
  
Without a word, Tomo struck their morpher.  
  
 _ **_"REIN-!"_**_  
  
 _ **FWASH!**_  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
"Now then," Gina started---  
  
"We need to split up so some of us can hack into the city's speaker systems and stop that song," Vrissy interjected.  
  


* * *

  
 **_"REIN-!"_**  
  
 **FWASH!**  
  
 **_"CARNATION!"_**  
  
"Right move, I think we've almost got it," Tomo said. "We just need to pick the right song to counter it."  
  


* * *

  
 ** __"REIN-!"__**  
  
 ** _FWASH!_**  
  
 ** __"CARNATION!"__**  
  
"You know what's horrible about all of this happening today?" Harley asked as they tried a song that wasn't working well- winding up back to back with Tomo, as she fought to catch her breath.  
  
"What?" Tomo asked, shooting at the Ninja Rangers. "That it's your birthday?"  
  
"YES!" Harley huffed. "I mean, I didn't plan to do anything fancy today, but still!"  
  
"Well, once this is over, hopefully it won't be too late for what I did plan for us," Tomo admitted.  
  
"And what's that?" Harley asked.   
  
"Dinner Reservations," Tomo answered.  
  
"TOMO! RESET!" Nepeta shouted.  
  
Tomo did such.  
  
 ** __"REIN-!"__**  
  
 ** _FWASH!_**  
  
 ** __"CARNATION!"__**  
  
"Dinner reservations? Where?" Harley asked Tomo as they headed back into battle, another song on the roster.  
  
"You know, that new place on Lopan that you've been wanting to try," Tomo chuckled, a little sheepishly.  
  
"HOW!?" Harley asked, nearly stopping dead in her tracks and only her runner's instincts keeping her from fumbling. "That place has a five month waiting list!"  
  
"Remember that mass invasion Enter did with the USB droids?" Tomo asked.  
  
"The data theft things?" Harley asked. "What about it?

"Well, one of the droids we fought happened to try to brick the PDA of the manager of the restaraunt, and I managed to stop it before it could, so..." Tomo shrugged. "The manager said he owed me a favor."  
  
"I am giving you SUCH a kiss as soon as we're either demorphed or reset," Harley said.  
  
"I'll be waiting, then," Tomo giggled in turn.

* * *

 _ **_"REIN-!"_**_  
  
 _ **FWASH!**_  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
Indeed, as soon as the reset had finished, Harley was pressing her lips to Tomo's, much to Gina's confusion. "Did... something happen last loop?"  
  
Sally shrugged. "No clue."  
  


* * *

  
 _ **_"REIN-!"_**_  
  
 _ **FWASH!**_  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
The Overdrive team sneaked into an administration office that had been overtaken by Kelzaks.  
  
June looked to Sally, who flashed a handsign for moving in three...  
  
The team readied to move...  
  
Two...  
  
The Kelzaks weren't even looking in their direction.  
  
One.  
  
The team moved silently, like the Ninjas who were nowhere to be found.  
  


* * *

 ** __"KIRAMEI CHARGE!"__** was the only warning said Ninjas received before a burst of energy shattered the Boombox that Gluefloor was carrying.  
  
The Kiramagers walked into view- all six of them, suited up.  
  
"Oh, look, the Kiramagers are back," Ridley said. "No Overdrives? Oh well. SO you took out our boombox. Too bad we hacked into the city's speaker system!" And with that announcement-   
  
...Nothing happened.  
  
"...And we hacked it back," Harry said simply.   
  


* * *

  
Vrissy plugged her Morpher into a computer terminal with an audio jack, and grinned. "Rise and Shine, folks." She selected her Music Collection folder. "Rise and Shine."  
  


* * *

  
  
"Well, even stopping our music," The Crimson Thunder Ranger began. "You can't beat us with two of your teammates bound by the hand like that."  
  
"Not without the Overdrives backing you up," The Green Samurai said, crossing his arms.   
  
"Really, you ought to have left them behind and faced us personally," Navy Thunder agreed. "You might have stood a chance, then."  
  
"You may have stopped the music," Gluefloor Jamen started, "but I can still glue you to the floor!!" He motioned towards them menacingly.  
  
"You really don't understand what it means when we say we hacked it back do you?" Tomo asked, shaking their head.  
  
And on that cryptic note...  
  
Jazzy music began to play.  
  
[ **> [S] Rise and Shine**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFlp0zdCnzI)

Atsuya and Nepeta immediately snapped into a duet dancing pose, heads snapping in synch, almost rehearsed, towards the Jamenshi.  
  
"Uhoh!" The Jamenshi realized all too late what was about to happen.  
  
The Kiramagers scattered around the field- and the Ninjas were forced to split their attention.  
  
 _ **[Rise and Shine, Little Darling, The bank has yet to close,]**_  
  
Atsuya suddenly stopped in place, pivoting on a heel and swinging Nepeta around-

 _ **[The chassis's giving you bedroom eyes and I gotta say no, no, no.]**_  
  
She kicked the Jamenshi straight in the face- staggering him backwards over the ruined boombox.  
  
Tomo and Harley played distraction on different parts of the field- harassing the Thunder Rangers and keeping them far apart. Meanwhile, Harry was focusing on the Green Samurai, and Equius was squaring off against Ridley.  
  
Nepeta landed on her feet, and pulled Atsuya along with the music, bringing him along for the follow up to the Jamenshi as he tried to et back to his feet.  
  
This time, Atsuya's sword came slashing down, once twice thrice- and then he pulled back and Nepeta came in the opposite direction with her own sword.  
  
 **[0:30]**  
  
Gluefloor was unable to get the flow of battle back under his control, and he roared- launching glue bursts at Atsuya and Nepeta- who spun around eachother, going into dips, and swings, and other fancy dance moves to dodge the glue shots- all of which went wild into the fight around them and forced the Ninja team off balance.  
  
Most dodged- but the Samurai didn't manage it, becoming splattered in green glue that blended in well with his uniform.  
  
Naturally, he began to dance uncontrollably, and Harry turned his attention towards helping Tomo against Navy Thunder.  
  
"How are they doing this!?" Ridley shouted as she dodged several well practiced sword strikes.   
  
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Equius asked back  
  
 **[0:45]**

Nepeta and Atsuya briefly held eachother for a moment, tight and close to eachother, then nodded, and dodge rolled forwards- tossing their swords into the air, and calling for their blasters.  
  
Shots fired off rapid fire into Gluefloor- who shouted in dismay as they struck his chest, and sent him flying backwards into a wall where his glue spout mask cracked and coated himself all over in his own glue- sticking him to the wall.  
  
"Oh! Oh no!" He shouted.  
  
 **[1:00]**  
  
 _"SOMEONE STOP THEM ALREADY!"_ Ridley shouted in frustration- and then jumped away from Shiny Breaker as it rocketed towards the spot she'd occupied with a _**SPIKOOOOM!**_  
  
 _ **[You say, "Oh my god, there's nothing I can do!" You're under me and I'm on top of you.]**_  
  
Atsuya tossed his blaster over to Tomo- who caught it and began dual wielding without pause- then caught his sword as it fell down into his hand.  
  
Nepeta's sword, meanwhile, came down handle first onto Crimson Thunder's head, bonking him and staggering him, giving Harley an opening to grab that sword as it bounced and begin dual wielding.   
  
"Kiramei Buster!" Atsuya and Nepeta called out, with Atsuya combining his sword onto Nepeta's Blaster.  
  
 _ **_:"KIRAMEI BUSTER! KIRAKIRAMEI CHARGE!"_**_  
  
Standing stock still- save for the tapping of their feet to the music- Atsuya and Nepeta took aim at the Jamenshi as the energy built up along the blaster- pink and red alternating energy at that-

 **[1:30]**  
  
"FIRE!" They shouted.  
  
 _ **_"CHECKMAGE!"_**_ The energy blast lanced outwards and struck home true- spearing through Gluefloor and sending him into a shocking overload.  
  
"In the end," he shouted, "I guess I was the one who got stuck to the dancefloor!"  
  
And then, unable to fall over- he just exploded in place- sending wall fragments flying through the air, forcing the Ninja Rangers to dodge once more.  
  
"That's enough!" Navy Thunder shouted. "RETREAT!"  
  
And thus, the Ninja Ranjers leaped away into teleports, absconding from the fight.  
  
Nepeta and Atsuya looked to their hands, and watched as the glue evaporated on sight.  
  
"Cowards!" Harley shouted. "Atleast wait for the song to finish!"  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile on Gilgamesh's Earth, Kurantula just silently shook his head and activated an Insurance Mask.  
  
"Time to add some more tack to this already sticky situation," He said, "GO! KRAGLE SHELLGA!" He threw his staff forwards, and Garuza and Lothor turned their heads in surprise.  
  
"Kragle?" Lothor asked.  
  
"Don't ask me," Garuza answered.  
  


* * *

  
 **[2:00]**  
  
Needless to say, [the Jamenju emerged from its portal](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage19-gluefloor2.png) several moments later as the song wrapped up.

It was a Shellga Type Jamenju, with a giant glue mask over its head- sprouting from the capped nozel was a bunch of hardened glue looking like a wax skull.  
  
"No time to wait," Nepeta said, activating her morpher. "Everyone! Let's go!"  
  


* * *

  
"MASHIIIN!" The five core stones came forth, growing to size and activating their Zord forms.  
  
 _ **_"DRIJAN!"_**_ Drijan burst forth from a teleport, seemingly breaking free through the ground otherwise.   
  
The Kiramagers boarded their partners.  
  
 ** __"MASHIN GATTAI!"__**  
  
"MASHIN HENKEI!" Harry called out, already in stone form and transforming Drijan.  
  
 _"READY! KIRAMAGEIN!" **_"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"_**_  
  
 _"READY! GIGANT DRILLER!" **_"GIGANT DRILLER!"_**_  
  
"Remember the plan, everyone!" Tomo called out as the two mecha prepared themselves for the fight.  
  
The glue cap blew off of Kragle Shellga, loosening glue atop a building, which it then kicked at the two Megazords-  
  
"DODGE!" Harley called- and they dodged the building as it stuck to another building.  
  
"Just like the last time in the same way too," Nepeta said, eyeing the building. "How odd."  
  
As the camera cycled through the Kiramagers, Tomo said, "Let's try that stupid crazy plan."  
  
The Shellga tried it again, krazy gluing the top of a building and kicking it at Gigant Driller- who dodged.  
  
Kiramagein then came in, presenting itself as a target, and then turning their back to the Jamenju as it fired glue at them.  
  
[Their back was covered-](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage19-gluefloor3.png) "Woahh! That's gross!" Fiya complained.  
  
"Harry, let's combine!" Atsuya called out.  
  
Kiramagein took off at a run towards Gigant Driller, [who leaned out from behind a building, hesitantly.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage19-gluefloor4.png) "Aw, seriously? We're really trying this?"

"I don't like it either, but we're doing it anyways!" Fiya shouted.  
  
Kiramagein leaped into the air, over Driller, and landed behind him, back to back that- SLICK- suddenly were stuck together.  
  
Kiramagein lifted its legs- supported entirely by Driller's strong metal spine.

**__"KIRAMEI DRILLER!"__ **

"Mashin Gattai Kiramei Driller?" Harley stuck her hands together.  
  
"We're holding steady for the moment!" Tomo said after looking at some screens.   
  
"This is reckless," Equius muttered to himself.  
  
"Don't try this at home, kids," Nepeta said, possibly breaking the fourth wall.  
  
"Harry, spin us right around!" Atsuya pointed forwards. "AND CHARGE!"

"Alright!" Harry started spinning Gigant Driller around at the waist- [whirling around rapidly as he began charging forwards towards the Jamenju](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage19-gluefloor6.png)\-- the tread feet pointed straight at it.

The Jamenju...had no idea how to respond to this insanity.  
  
 ** _"KIRAMEI DRILLER!"_ **The lot of them called out. **_"WILD SCRAMBLE!!!!"_**

The Jamenju got hit by the sword, shovel claw, drill, and grabbing arm... AND Kiramagein's feet in a very rapid succession. Several, several times in a row.

And then Harry had enough of the spinning, finishing it with a drill punch that exploded the Jamenju brilliantly behind him as he pushed past it.

_**_"CHECKMAGE!"_** _

The glue disolved, and Kiramagein split off of Driller's back the exact second that passed.  
  
"Well, I think that was an extremely fun practice session, don't you, Atsuya?" Nepeta asked, [squeezing her hands together and tilting her head to the side.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage19-gluefloor9.png)

"Yeah, wasn't it?" Equius said, at the same time Tomo remarked- "That's putting it mildly."  
  
Atsuya chuckled, and nodded his head. "Yeah, it was a pretty good practice session!"  
  


* * *

  
"...Just what crazy combination was that?" Kurantula asked, staring at the static of an ended live broadcast. "Just. Just what kind of crazy combination was THAT!?"  
  
"...This is what those crazy kids get up to when given the power to try as many wacky ideas as they want and see what sticks to the wall, isn't it?" Lothor asked, a little somberly.  
  
"I would say so," Garuza nodded. Then, he stiffened, and looked at Lothor with a slow tilt of his head. "...I recognize that pun you just made. And I hate it. So very much."  
  


* * *

  
Onboard the Beltus, Tomo took off their Morpher and handed it over to Gina Kae, who took it with a wry smile.  
  
"I'll give it back first thing tomorrow, I promise," she said. "Just let me make sure I can control the energy feedback better. That energy surge that my scanners detected when you ended the loop was pretty frightening."  
  
"Yeah," Tomo nodded. "I don't want to get shocked turning that thing off if my wiring job went bad during a fight."  
  
"This is why I should have done the work to begin with," Gina said, heading for the room's exit. "Next time, let me design the new toys, alright?"  
  
"Won't happen again, promise," Tomo gave a small salute and a coy smile as the good Doctor Kae left for her lab onboard the ship.  
  
Tomo then went and sat down next to Harley, and put an arm and a wing around her shoulders. "So. Have fun today?"  
  
"If that's what you had to go through on your own? I'm so sorry you had to do it that many times," Harley said instead of answering that question.   
  
"How many loops was it?" Tavvy asked.   
  
"Eight," Vrissy answered. "And counting this morning..."  
  
"Too many," Atsuya said, simply. "We can't make a habit of using that."  
  
"We could run it every battle, but then it'd drag on forever," Harley nodded.   
  
"Yeah," June grimaced. "Not that having it wouldn't be handy, but... maybe we should leave it to the Seers to predict if we need something like that?"  
  
"Agreed," Tomo nodded. "There's... only a few situations where we need to be using that kind of tech that I can think of, but only as long as we realize how bad a situation is soon enough to use it... Seer foresight's the only thing that'll get us that heads up."  
  
"What are the chances we'll need to use something like that again anyways?" Sally asked. "I think we pretty thoroughly put the fear into the Ninja Rangers today."  
  
"Lower than you'd think, despite having said that," Harry teased his sister.   
  
"But also higher than any of us would hope," Zahra said, turning to gaze out the window at the Zord Bay.   
  


* * *

  
Several hours later...   
  
That very night, as some clocks on Earth C struck midnight, a golden tear opened in space- and a meteoric object hurtled out- blasting past the Beltus- grazing the shields, and redirecting off into the middle of some small city on the coast of a continent.  
  


* * *

  
 _ **KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!**_  
  
"By the way, let's do that glue combination again with our zords next time!" Sally grinned at Harry. "Drivemax Driller Wild Scramble!!" She shouted, punching into the air, imaging the Drivemax Ultrazord with Gigant Driller glued to its back, hanging off like a kid stuck in a backpack.  
  
"No way," Harry shook his head, and put a hand on his back. "I feel like I swapped bodies with Shovellow after that stunt!"  
  
"Hey! My back's not that bad!" Shovellow complained from the Zord Bay.  
  


* * *

  
 ** _NEXT KIRAMAGER!_**  
  
"Wha- a Jamenshi that's fishing humans?!" Tomo asked.  
  
"These splashing waves of the sea are my Moisturizer!" The Jamenshi declared.  
  
"Wait- is that a Kanema stone!?" Equius asked.  
  
"Big trouble!" Atsuya reported. "Mabushiina is...!"  
  
"The witch's curse is finally activating...!" Mabushiina whimpered.  
  
"Let's Sparkle Next Time too!" Esprez called out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed a Jazzy song for this sequence and asked my moirail for suggestions. They provided this among a few others, and I felt 'Rise and Shine' was the best fit among the options given. Thanks go to them for how fun and snappy the sequence ended up.  
> \---  
> The Time Loop stuff for this episode is necessary set up for the next *immediate* arc, to establish the ruleset we're operating by here, as *well* as to set up for a future arc in the Next Act. 
> 
> Yes, it's powered by that danged cube in my avatar image again. Each and every exploration of what it does helps me get a better grip on what the heck the Carnation Rein even is- for it's destined use in an original concept story. I knew it always had time travel properties, of course, and have always written it vaguely being aligned with such abilities, but this was me hashing out both its name and how it might function while installed in a Kiramei Changer. 
> 
> Originally, this reset stuff was going to be done by having Tomo carry around the Reset Button everywhere, but that seemed unwieldy, given how big it is. Tying the button to the Cube just gave me a way to shove it into Tomo's Morpher and make it always accessible on hand when the situation is right.  
> \---  
> Tomo finished off the second Robo Ninja Ranger by pure accident that last loop- it's technically the first blood they've given to this team since Enter killed Robo Yellow. Still. That's two of the six down, and one more closer to restoring June's team back to life- not that they know that's what's going to happen yet. Once they know, the incentive to finish these Robot Rangers off is going to shoot up in priority. 
> 
> Next chapter: INTERMISSION: In the Loop
> 
> Should be... ah, popping up soonish, I think. Probably later today if not tomorrow.


	6. INTERMISSION: In the Loop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dirk and the Traveler talk; Mei and Youko have a day at the hot springs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:   
> Meta Talk.  
> Dirk Strider.  
> Identity Questions.   
> Secret Romance.

**EARTH DATE: NOVEMBER 30TH, 2012.**  
  
"Well," Dirk said, eyeing a LEGO recreation of the cube, rendered in red plastic rather than silver metal, that sat on top of a cleared chess game board. "I gotta say that's an interesting way of adapting around unusable footage."  
  
He tapped the cube.   
  
"But is THIS really necessary?" he asked.  
  
The Traveler snatched the cube off the table, and held it close to their chest, scowling past their scarf. "Of course it is!" The snow flurried outside- gaining in intensity for a moment.   
  
"I'm just saying after your last two attempts to work the thing into a story..." Dirk trailed off, and then grimaced. "Yeah, thanks for the mental images."  
  
"The Carnation Rein is a perfectly reasonable excuse for this previously-established-thanks-to-Kiramager-canon methodology of time travel," The Traveler said, tumbling the cube in their hands. "And sorry. Didn't mean for you to see all that..." They muttered, captchaloging the LEGO made prop in favor of decaptchaloging a small plastic model kit of a white and translucent light blue Kiramei Stone. It was lacking any stickers on it save for the yellow of the eyes on one piece.  
  
"My point is, you didn't get back to those plots," Dirk said, shaking his head. "Inserting it into an existing gimmick just reeks of ego."  
  
"You have to admit it's a pretty elegant means of resetting time, though," The Traveler offered.  
  
Dirk evaded the question, asking, "Time moved on your end between the end of our last game and now, didn't it?"  
  
"It's snowing," The Traveler answered quietly. "Got my wish. Also almost done posting the last act now. Just did Jetta's past self chapter today." A pause. "Also, Hiveswap Act Two."  
  
"You never do realize how frustrating it is to leave someone hanging in the middle of a conversation like that until it's done to you," Dirk griped. "Or, conversely, how annoying it is when a video game gets delayed for three fucking years."  
  
"Time flows differently from outside perspectives," The Traveler said, transforming the small model kit into a train with a few simple motions. It then sat on the chess board, curled like a snake so that its head chased its tail.   
  
"Oroborus," Dirk observed.  
  
"Beginning tied to the end," The Traveler agreed. "This kind of mechanic had its role to play at some point, whether the Carnation was used for it or not. The ambiguity kinda... needed to be hashed out, somewhere along the line. First I thought it was the Reset Button. Then Reversia. Now both through the Carnation Rein."  
  
Dirk hummed, eyeing the un-stickered toy model with some wary feelings. "The next few days are going to be rough for those kids, aren't they?"  
  
This time, the Traveler dodged the question, "Back to your original question. 'Is it necessary?' No, explaining HOW it works isn't necessary. If you'd rather I'd just stuck with the big obvious red button, I thought of that. And no, it's not going to work for what's coming up."   
  
Or maybe they didn't, Dirk thought.  
  
"And I don't just mean in the short term next few days," they continued. "I'm talking endgame."  
  
Or maybe they did evade the question entirely, Dirk sighed.  
  
"Hey, don't give me that look," The Traveler said. "It's not MY fault Kiramager's ramping up the plot tension with Yodonna. Freaking curve balls, Dirk. I can't stop them coming."  
  
"You could just rewrite the story like you did today," Dirk offered, referring to the total upheaval and erasure of the canon Kiramager plot for the last episode save for the Zord Battle... that technically had yet to happen from his perspective. Framing devices of different times was a hard concept to work around even for an Ultimate Prince of Heart. His aspect was the matter of Souls, not Time, for that matter. And the Traveler's domain was Light, at any rate, so some confusion regarding the exact nature of preceding cause to effect fell somewhat vaguely between the two of them as a natural fact of the matter.  
  
"I could, and I probably will, in places," The Traveler paused. "But there's Debuts in the wing, Dirk. New gear, new zords... always escalating. Always advancing the plot. Can't stay static. And even without Kiramager doing the escalation... let's be real here. Gilgamesh? He's going to escalate regardless. That's not a thing that's stopping happening any time soon."  
  
"Just seems like those kids aren't getting a break," Dirk said.  
  
"I'll give them the whole month after the Zabyun debut, or there about," The Traveler promised.   
  
Dirk didn't seem impressed. "Tell me what happens next."  
  
"Fine." The Traveler pouted, and took the train back, turning it back into a gemstone toy before captchaloging it. "Let me tell you how it all works out."  
  
"I'll reset the board," Dirk nodded, and began resetting the chess pieces. Without even pausing, he then asked, "By the way, what's the theme for this Act anyways?"  
  
"Surface level? Music, specifically 'Burn You Up, Burn You Down,'" The Traveler answered. "Dig a little deeper, though..." They pulled down the scarf from around their face, and gave a sad smile. "Well. The theme of this Act is Choice, the Act of Choosing and the Repercussions of said Choices."

Dirk hummed, pondering that. "Interesting idea." He finishes setting up the board. "Let's begin."

* * *

 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 1ST, 2012.**  
  
"Youko?" Mei began suddenly.  
  
The two female Go-Buster rangers sat in a hot-springs styled bathhouse somewhere on in the Alternia Galaxy.  
  
They were certainly an odd pair. One humanoid Fae girl with fleshy skin turned rather pink from the temperatures of the air and water, the other a crystalian type figure whose skin seemed to be an unyielding pale silver type of crystal- but appearances were deceiving after all, if her whole body were made out of solid crystal that didn't bend, she wouldn't be able to move period. There was some actual give to the texture in specific places at the joints.  
  
But it didn't appear segmented such as a Carapacian's body structure, which was... a total digression from where Mei wanted her thought process to go.  
  
"Yeah, Mei?" Youko asked, turning to look at her teammate.  
  
She refocused for a moment, then asked... "Have you ever been kissed before?"  
  
Youko's face went redder due to the question- "What a loony question to ask in a place like this! What's this about?"  
  
"Sorry... I've just been thinking about what we learned about the Kiramagers' Mashin Partners," Mei said, looking at her hands. "The five of them were reincarnated... Is it possible I was too? I haven't had much issue adapting to this humanoid form, after all. But then again, I can't really remember much of anything of being an actual Kiramei Stone either."  
  
"It's supposed to be our day off from thinking about stuff like that, isn't it?" Youko sighed.   
  
"Sorry, again," Mei bobbed her head slightly. "I've just been stuck wondering... trying to dig at memories. It's hard to tell what I'm imagining up fresh versus what may be an actual memory."  
  
Youko hummed, then asked, "Platonic kiss or romantic kiss?"  
  
"Either, both, maybe? I don't know exactly," Mei said. "It's just an impression I have."  
  
"Well, platonic of course I've been kissed." Youko said. "My parents used to kiss me on the forehead at night when I went to bed and was all tucked in."  
  
"...I don't think it was that, then," Mei said.  
  
"Hmm..." Youko considered for a moment. Her cheeks went red again, then she said... "Yes. I've been kissed romantically- Don't! Don't tell anyone, please? We're trying to keep it down low? Hiro- His's family is kind of... Strictish about that sort of thing?"  
  
Having observed the two in the past avoiding being spotted together publicly outside of team exercises... of which she realized there were quite a few Ryuuji, her and J had been left out of, Mei considered the implications of that statement and decided that Hiromu and Youko probably had good reasons for keeping their relationship secret and so nodded, "Of course."  
  
"It's..." Youko paused. "Are you looking for like, the description of how it feels physically or the emotions or--?"  
  
"Both," Mei said. "Physical and emotional sensations, if you could, please."  
  
Youko sighed, "Of course you'd want that."  
  
"Only what you're comfortable with?" Mei tilted her head. "Just enough data that I can probably guess whether these impressions are legit memories or not."  
  
Youko took a breath, and said, "I'll... just go with the Physical feelings first, I guess..."  
  
And so Mei sat and listened, taking each description Youko gave and trying to see if it matched what she was either remembering, or making up in her mind.  
  
...She was pretty certain by the end of it, though, that she was no closer to a true answer or not, because she came to realize that if she was remembering a past life memory, it almost certainly was a Crystalian person she was kissing, and not a fleshy human.  
  
...Something didn't quite feel right with that kind of dismissal, though. Not deep in the core of the silver Kiramei stone that made up her body at present.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little elaboration on the Cube stuff, as well as setting up for the immediate and distant futures of this Act.   
> \---  
> The Decisions made regarding Mei's situation in the last act were made out of a confuddled, confused mess of foiled predictions. Choices I made regarding which branch of the story to tell had to be righted, very quickly, without considering the past setup properly... and then certain pieces of future setup that happened now tie back into these events in ways I'd never considered.
> 
> Still, the choice was made, and we're about to see the consequences play out of those choices. 
> 
> When I talk about Choices and Consequences, I mean it for myself as well as for the characters in universe. Some times these choices spiral into consequences outside of my foresight until the moment they happen, and that leaves me with a growing sense of dread. Where does the line fall between what I planned, and what the story demanded to happen by building off of those plans originally through natural progression of cause to effect?
> 
> Having finished this Act entirely, it's something I can say with some certainty that I'm not really happy with the outcome of, but it's the only outcome that could have happened to allow the past events to have happened to begin with.
> 
> Mei's situation is a horrible one born out of bad assumptions and quick off my feet writing that didn't take into consideration the full ramifications of what was going on. Her soul was SHATTERED with the breaking of that stone, and... That's a horrible thing to put someone through.
> 
> \---
> 
> The Next Chapter is MSK: 01X20: "I never thought we had so much time to lose." (Part 1) 
> 
> See you later in the week, all.


	7. MSK: 01X20: "I never thought we had so much time to lose." (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 1/2. Garuza gets his hands on the Kanaema Stone, Reversia, setting off a series of inevitable events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Sudden Curse Magic.  
> Fishing without a license.  
> Weird Time Shit.  
> Picture Embedding and Linkage.  
> Music Sequence.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 2ND, 2012.**  
  
Earth C, a town called Sardines...  
  
Garuza stood, waiting, as a spark of golden light descended from the heavens.  
  
"There," he nodded, and then stepped out of hiding, into the light cast by that approaching light. "Come to me- Kanamea Stone!!"  
  
He threw a hand out and caught the approaching blast of golden light before it impacted anything.  
  
A flare of light seared against his gloved hand, casting a brilliant golden shadow across Garuza's armor... And when Garuza opened his hand, a gleaming, smoking, claw shaped gemstone resided within it.   
  
"...To think it's actually real..." He said simply, and then teleported away.  
  


* * *

  
Necrolai stormed into the old planning office, seemingly to use it for her own ends, only to come up short as Garuza and Lothor were already there, standing next to the table, with a sparkly, white with blue, red and yellow stripped gemstone resting on it.  
  
There was a Jamenshi also in the room- one designed with a fishing rod design to his mask, and belt worn equipment.   
  
"...What are you three doing here at this hour?" Necrolai asked, putting her hands on her hips. "We're not supposed to use this room anymore. Let alone this time of night!"  
  
"We're..." Lothor began, but Garuza cut him off.  
  
"We could ask you the same question, Necrolai," Garuza said, crossing his arms over his chest.  
  
"Well, I came to... uh..." Necrolai trailed off.  
  
The Jamenshi coughed, "Could it be that everyone wants to use this room for nefarious deeds of their own agendas and doesn't want to share?"  
  
Lothor laughed as Garuza and Necrolai turned on the Jamenshi with annoyed gazes. "Well, let's just come clean, shall we?" He motioned towards the Gemstone. "This, as far as we can tell, is a fragment of an artefact Gilgamesh used to send a monster through time to attack Atlantis. Given that it's now but a piece of it, we were going to see if we could field test it to see what it does."  
  
"...Time travel, hm?" Necrolai asked, reaching for the stone object and lifting it off the table. "It looks like that orange stone the Rangers used to destroy my last body. I would certainly Wish this thing had the incredible ability to undo that power."  
  
The Stone pulsed in her hand- and a sudden tearing sound opened in the air above them. There was a flash of golden light and then---

 _ **"EEEEEEEEEEEK!"**_  
  
Everyone looked upwards- and everyone save for Necrolai backed away sharply as a pulling vortex of wind grabbed the female villain and dragged her upwards into the spiraling black hole vortex of white, yellow, blue, and red sparkles, vanishing her from sight...  
  
And then the stone fell from the portal again, landing on the table with a faint thud as the vortex snapped shut.  
  
"Note to self," Lothor said, eyeing the stone with a healthy, wary look of paranoia, "Wix-nay on on the Ish-nay talk around these things."  
  
"Noted," Garuza agreed.

* * *

_"When People Shine!" Mashin Fiya narrated, "Miracles are Born!"_   
  
_"Kiramental!" He continued. "The proof of Warriors who can Change the Future!"_   
  
_"Tension Maxed!" he shouted- "KIRAMEI GO!!!"_

[ **_MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER!_ ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

In the Sheppard family apartment in the City of Altantis... there was a small Doll House that had once belonged to a younger Lizzy Sheppard that was presently standing wedged into a corner between the hallway to the bedrooms and the rest of the apartment.  
  
There was a small handwritten sign hanging by the front door- "Mashin Hotel."  
  
Inside the doll house's many rooms were three specific areas set up for the nigh permanent residents who lived there now.  
  
In a green hued room, resided Mahha's Kiramei Stone. In a light blue room resided Esprez's Kiramei Stone... and in a white colored room resided Drybe's Kiramei Stone.  
  
The Simple White Stone sat there, unassuming, seemingly sleeping as young Kiramei Stones tended to do.  
  
Yes, even as Mahha and Esprez woke up to the sound of an alarm, and even as Harley tiredly stumbled out of her room, pyjamas disheveled from sleep and a towel and washcloth shoved under one arm as she rubbed at her eyes to get the sleep out of them...  
  
Drybe sat, unmoving.   
  
Even in another room in the 'Mashin Hotel,' the color mismatched Rolland began to wake up in a sea of teal....  
  
Drybe sat, still sleeping.  
  
The small white stone's sparkle pulsed slowly, in and out, like breathing, or a sleep mode heartbeat.  
  
As Harley walked by the Mashin hotel in the hallway, her form cast a shadow into the hotel's many rooms.   
  
The Kiramei Stones sparkled brightly, standing out against that shadow...  
  
Green, Light Blue, Orange...  
  
Drybe's sparkles pulsed grey and orange within the shadows for but a moment when the normal white pulse faded in that breathing pattern.  
  


* * *

  
In the Ranger Classroom that Sunday morning in the City of Atlantis, Tomo strapped their Morpher back to their wrist, frowning. "So... it's fixed?"  
  
"Potentially," Gina Kae frowned. "Unfortunately, any further issues with the Reset Device will have to wait. We've got a more pressing issue."  
  
"What kind of issue?" Tomo asked.  
  
The Doctor brought up a hologram screen from her KI, showing a golden portal with something shooting out of it. "A meteorite appeared out of a portal overnight. It was giving off similar temporal energy readings to the Reset Device, bashed off of the shields of the Beltus, and crash landed in the Costal City of Sardines."  
  
"...Sardines?" Tomo asked, incredulous. "Who the hell named these cities?"   
  
"Carapacians with a can fixation," Harry said simply, walking into the room, Equius at his side. "We're all ready for the dig."  
  
"Dig?" Tomo asked, turning to them.  
  
"The meteor crashed somewhere and basically merged into the ground as far as we can tell," Gina said. "We'll have to dig it up if we've any chance of recovering it."  
  
"It might be the Time Kanaema Stone," Jetta said, decaptchaloging from Equius' morpher. "Reversia."  
  
"Or it could be any number of other temporal artefacts," Equius added.  
  
"Regardless, while they're dealing with digging up whatever it is," Gina said, motioning to those two rangers, "Tomo, I want you and Harley patroling the town, just in   
case."  
  
"What about Atsuya and Nepeta?" Tomo asked.   
  
"Mabushiina wanted to visit an aquarium and so did Carry, so they're taking the both of them to the local one on..." Gina shook her head. "Well, one of the local ones to Alternia, I think. Not one of the ones local to Pegasus."  
  


* * *

  
Indeed, they were at an Alternian Aquarium on a certain islands-in-the-sea based world.   
  
Here, many of Alternia's Giant Sea Lusus creatures had been relocated- long divorced from their jobs as custodial guardians in this modern age. Great Sharks, and Sea Serpents, Eels, Dolphins, Seahorses, and Great Sharksnakes swam through the oceans, around the underwater structural tunnels than ran beneat the surface for these magnificent creatures to see.  
  
"Woooow!" Carry pressed her face against the glass as a Giant Python sized Sharksnake slithered up to the glass- its backside glowing an electric blue with bio-luminescence as it eyed the strange hybrid girl- instinctual feelings of parential curiosity driving it to try and figure out just what exactly the Crystal born Human Alternian hybrid appearing girl even was.   
  
"Sharks are so cool!" She called out.  
  
"Hehe, well, she's sure enjoying herself, isn't she?" Mabushiina asked, standing a ways back next to the tour guide- an alternian woman, cerulean blood going by the sign on her name tag, wearing a shark-biting-my-head hat.   
  
"She really is," Nepeta smiled, clapping her hands. "How emotional!"  
  
"Shark-type species have an amazing ability that helps them find food," The tour guide spoke, gaining Carry's attention as the Sharksnake slithered away.   
  
"Really!?" Carry ran over. "Tell me! Tell me!"  
  
Atsuya smiled as the Tour guide explained: "They can search for hidden fish and crabs!" She decaptchalogued a sign. "They have electro receptors called, ahhem," she then quoted several names,"From Milky Way derived cultures, the 'Ampullae of Lorenzini', from Alternia Galaxy derived cultures, the 'The Hunter Ozenri's Nose'-- which can detect the slightest electric currents, including bio-electric ones!"   
  
"I never knew that!" Carry gasped.  
  
"Anything like that from Pegasus?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"Hmmm," The tour guide considered for a moment. "We've been collaborating with many worlds to consolidate our knowledge. A few Shark like creatures in Pegasus seem to have the same features..."  
  
As the talked on, and Atsuya, Nepeta, and Carry seemed engrossed in the knowledge, Mabushiina felt faint, and leaned to sit down on a bench as she put a hand to her chest, trying to control her breathing.  
  
"Mabushiina?" Nepeta asked suddenly. "Are you okay?"  
  
"Just felt tired, suddenly," the princess answered. "We've been walking a lot this morning, haven't we?"  
  


* * *

  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI CHARGE"_**_  
  
Equius swung his sword- casting off a beam of Kiramental in the shape of a fishing hook that swung down into the deep pit that had been dug out by Harry's Shiny Breaker.  
  
It dangled for several long moments, before Equius pulled it back, and dismissed the effect on his sword. "Nothing."  
  
"So either it's way down there still..." Harry peered into the depths. "Or we got beaten to the punch."  
  
"Equius, Harry!" Aradia Megido came running up to them then, a panicked look on her face, and a computer tablet in hand. "There's an ancient, underground sewer tunnel beneath us."  
  
The two Kiramagers looked towards each other.  
  
"Please don't tell me there were Security Cameras that caught Gilgamesh's people?" Equius begged.  
  
"Yes, but no," Aradia shook her head, and turned the tablet around. "Three days ago, a work crew were surveying the tunnels when this happened."  
  
The video played, showing a white colored vortex around a black hole in the center, the vortx itself was marred with red, yellow, and blue sparkles in spiraling patterns around its edges, suddenly opening- and the work crew in the tunnels getting yanked through it. One of them dropped the camera that was recording, and it caught the end of the event- the portal snapping closed.  
  
Harry swore, and Equius frowned.  
  
That was when Aradia suddenly yelped in surprise as she was forcibly dragged upwards into the air, pulled far away into the distance.  
  
"After her!" Equius ordered, and they took off running, activating their morphers with a "KIRAMEI CHANGE!"  
  


* * *

A vortex swirled over a part of the city of Sardines on Earth C, dragging people in left and right through its multi hued surface.  
  
And as Aradia was dragged in towards it- Harley Teleported in, grabbing her by the legs and dragging her down towards the ground- Tomo leaped into the frame next, wings spreading to gain air before morphing- grabbing Harley by the legs and dragging both of them down next.  
  
Following suit, Harry leaped into the air, grabbing Tomo, and brough them down close enough for Equius to grab on.  
  
Thus, another game of tug of war was happening.  
  
"What is this!?" Aradia shouted. "What's got me!? I can't tell!"  
  
Harley looked around and then saw it- "A fishing hook!?" Yes, a fishing hook was holding onto Aradia by the back of her belt.  
  
Equius and Harry managed to get the others to the ground- pulling back against the hook- and then Harley and Tomo held Aradia to the ground as Harry dehooked her, and began pulling backwards on the line.  
  
["Come on out you coward!" Harry shouted, tugging on the line](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba2.png).

A splash of water burst forth from the portal- and out came our fishing mask themed Jamenshi.  
  
He hit the ground, water splashing everywhere, and the Kiramagers looked on in surprise.  
  
"I'll just get to safety!" Aradia said, running off.  
  
"Well well, there's a Jamenshi after all," Tomo said, taunting the monster.

[The Jamenshi got to his feet,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba3.png) and introduced himself, "The Splashing Waves of the sea are my moisturizer! I'm Reeling Rod Jamen!" He crossed his arms. "Please stay out of my way, Kiramagers!"

He drew his fishing rod from his mask, and ran forwards, brandishing it like a sword. "Here I go!"  
  
The Kiramagers ran in- fighting against the Jamenshi-- but their attacks just slipped right off of him.  
  
"Why is he so wet!?" Harry asked- slipping to the ground from some stray water.  
  
Tomo got kicked into a table. "OW!"  
  
Equius grabbed the fishing rod, and held it down while Harry came in to grapple- it didn't work- just slipping off.  
  
Harley came loose from the fight with a flyer in hand- "What the- Grand Opening?" She looked at the flyer advertising a sale "Today Only" sale for a Grand Opening of some business... on the Third of the Month- the Monday following the current Sunday.  
  
As they tussled- Harry struck his Morpher by accident- _**_"KIRAMEI SEARCHING!"_**_ And immediately, it chimed- _**_"DISCOVERY!"_**_  
  
The Kiramagers and the Jamenshi stumbled apart from each other as the Jamenshi's bait bag glowed blue.  
  
"Why did it react like that...?" Harley asked.  
  
"Only one answer," Equius glared at the Jamenshi as he fished out the Kanaema Stone from his bag.

"Oh? This?" [He laughed, and held it out for them to see](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba4.png). "Yes, you guessed right!" He turned to look at the portal, and saw it closing. "Ooops! My time's up!" He slash attacked at the Kiramagers- stunning them for a moment- then leaped into the portal, which closed behind him a moment later.  
  
"Damn it," Tomo swore. "They got the Kanaema Stone before we did afterall."  
  
"Where was he taking those people he fished up?" Equius asked.  
  
Before the conversation could continue- Harry's morpher chimed. He activated it, and received the call.  
  
 _"Everyone, big trouble!"_ Atsuya reported. _"Mabushiina's collapsed!"_

* * *

"I'll call for Heliko," Nepeta said, tapping her Morpher.   
  
Mabushiina was gasping for air as a purple shine of dark magic flared up in her right eye.  
  
"What the...?" Atsuya stared on, watching as the flare up took on the shape of a familiar logo. "The Bechat Mask glyph!?"  
  


* * *

  
Not too much longer later, in the Beltus hanging in orbit over Earth C, Mabushiina lay in the infirmary, gasping for breath as the symbol in her eye glowed brightly.  
  
"So it looks like the Curse she was talking about didn't get cleared with Destoria," Harry said glumly, watching her status from the lounge room.  
  
"Yeah," Atsuya said dejectedly, holding up a half black, half orange swirled Kanaema Stone, slowly recovering its shine after being used last.   
  
"Why the Bechat mask symbol, though?" Nepeta asked, gazing out the window into the near empy Zord Bay.  
  
All the Kiramei Stones that were up and active were inside the Lounge Room, save for Jouki's new home- the Aqua Kiramei Stone.   
  
"The curse was placed by an unknown witch," Esprez mused. "Maybe it was someone from Gilgamesh's Empire that did it?"  
  
"But why curse everyone in King Oladdin's family in the past?" Equius asked. "It doesn't make sense from a motive standpoint."  
  
"Maybe their experiments with the Kanaema stone went wrong?" Mahha asked.  
  
"Reversia is said to have near exclusive dominion over traveling through time," Shovellow said.  
  
"There's no way to tell for sure," Fiya said. "None of us were there to witness that fight except for Jouki."  
  
Everyone looked up at the glimmering aqua stone, expectant, hoping for their rescued friend to wake up.  
  
"...I know we said we'd let him sleep," Harley began. "But maybe we should try waking him up?"  
  
Nobody disagreed with that request.  
  
"I'll do it," Esprez said, taking off and floating away towards the door down into the bay- passing by the idle Drybe, who barely tilted to turn to look after her as she went.  
  


* * *

  
Esprez hovered, full size, next to the slumbering Aqua Kiramei Stone... and then nudged forwards, lightly tapping her surface to his.   
  
"My friend," She began, "It's time for you to wake up."  
  
The aqua stone pulsed.... and then--   
  
"Nrgh?" He shifted. Groggily, the aqua stone asked, "Esprez? Am I dreaming again?"  
  
"No, you're awake," Esprez said, giggling slightly. "How do you feel?"  
  
"Like I got blown out of an airlock," he answered, lifting off of the platform and shrinking down. Esprez followed suit moments later.  
  


* * *

  
The aqua stone sat on the table, surrounded by friends and companions, taking in the information given.  
  
"We called her Numaajo, the Witch of the Stagnant Sea," Jouki narrated. "The day she arrived, the sea began to be polluted by slain fish- their blood drained from their bodies. More than that, we learned from a survivor that she was cursing anyone who approached her- a variety of curses. The survivor died relaying that information..."  
  


* * *

  
_["And so, King Oladdin, Queen Mabayuine, and I went on a mission to track down the source of this tragedy."]_   
  
_In flashback, a different design of Jouki, purple and black still in color, rocketed through the air over a torn up coast line. His face was much smoother, less fearsome, kind, yet simplified. Something like a snake's head, similar in shape to how Esprez's face manifested on Mashin Express._   
  
_As they flew, the landscape became twisted, looking like the corrupted surface of GIlgamesh's Earth._   
  
_["At the time, the King was experimenting with some ability of his Kiramental, and he granted me the ability, he thought, to protect from curses. We should have been fine."]_   
  
_Energy blasts smashed into the sea as Necrolai dodged to escape._   
  
_Jouki roared overhead- eyes gleaming with light as[King Oladdin and Queen Mabayuine disembarked](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba6.png)._   
  


_Rain fell over them, and Necrolai snarled- "Who dares attack me!? I'm busy trying to regain my body!"_

_"We are the King and Queen of Crystalia, and you, Witch Numaajo, are poisoning our world!" Oladdin declared._   
  
_"Crystalia?" Necrolai turned her head. "Fine then!" She gathered a curse spell in hand and flung it at them._   
  
_Jouki interceeded- rocketing infront and blocking the curse, and circling around, flinging it backwards into cliffs behind them._   
  
_An explosion blew off on impact._   
  
_"I'll dispell any curses you throw at us!" Jouki declared- eyes gleaming, ready for another laser blast._   
  
_"You're rather annoying when you talk," Necrolai growled at the train. She snapped her fingers, and summoned a horde of mud covered monsters- mockup Minions with masks painted with the Bechat symbols- but they weren't Bechats._   
  
_No, they were vampyric thralls, cursed into being by Necrolai's inherent nature._   
  
_["We fought," Jouki narrated. "The King and the Queen fought off the monsters- those thralls- and then... I'm not quite sure what happened."]_   
  
_There was a train whistle roaring- not one that Jouki was making. "Wait- what?!" And then a beam of light struck him._   
  
_["Someting caught me off guard. I don't remember what happened. But when I came to... I was crashed into the mountain side."]_   
  
_Indeed Jouki's eyes flared alight as he woke up, and he watched events unfold._   
  
_["The King had Numaajo on her last breaths."]_   
  
_Necrolai was sparking- and laughing. "I sacrifice my life to your family to die as many painful deaths as I've suffered today, KING OF CRYSTALIA!!"_   
  
_She fell- and exploded._

_["There hadn't seemed to be a curse that was actually cast. The King and Queen seemed disgruntled, but they were seemingly fine. No magic had flown about in that moment... And yet..."]_

* * *

"Tragedy after tragedy befell the King's family," the Aqua stone shuddered against the table. "And it started seven days after that battle... When the Queen crumbled into dust, leaving behind only her Crown."  
  
"Her brother and his fiance, then her father, now her..." Heliko whispered. "How horrible!"  
  
"We have to do something," Atsuya said. "Jouki..." he stood up. "If I could hone my Kiramental... could I get you able to break curses again?"  
  
"Maybe?" Jouki turned to look at Atsuya. "I could have tried to save the Queen, but... I'd lost that ability during the fight, somehow.." He snarled, upset. "And now even if I could get that ability to break curses again, I can't use it! There's no way for us to break that curse without me knowing how it was cast to begin with. I'd have to have a raw sample of her magic, fresh and painful, cast in the moment."  
  
"Then..." Atsuya looked around the room. "Then we'll just have to get that, then."  
  
"The Kanaema Stone," Tomo said, and everyone else nodded.  
  
"...Kanaema Stone?" Jouki asked. "What Kanaema Stone? Those are real?"  
  
"You missed out on a few adventures," Mahha said simply. "And a few other startling revelations while we're at it."  
  
"We can talk about those later," Equius said, taking out the flyer Harley had grabbed. "For now. Let's plan for tomorrow."  
  
"What are we dealing with exactly?" Nepeta asked.  
  
"Kanaema Stone, Reversia," Harry said, tapping at some buttons, and bringing up images of the Jamenshi and the Kanaema Stone it holds. "A while back, I asked the Mashin about the three known ones- we have Destoria, and the coloring for this one matches Reversia."  
  
"We can guess it's power," Equius said. "Time manipulation."  
  
"It's said to defy the flow of time itself," Shovellow quoted.   
  
Harry continued, "Everything myth wise we have on it says it functions pretty similarly to a Stargate Wormhole intersecting a solar flare. To the point a lot of the Myths about it in this Galaxy are assumed to just be Stargate Flare incidents."  
  
"So it's what, just been bouncing around time for all eternity?" Harley asked.  
  
"We don't really know where they come from, so it's possible," Fiya said. "Afterall, Gilgamesh's bunch had Destoria and was using it to power their wish monster."  
  
"I think we can guess it'll have a temperment like Destoria too," Mahha said. "After all, the proper way to use Destoria was to make a request, not to make a wish."  
  
"It corrupted wishes made around it, making them monkey paws," Nepeta nodded. "Could Reversia do the same if misused?"  
  
"If they've been experimenting with it, it's possible this Numaajo witch was a Jamenshi sent into the past by mistake," Tomo guessed. "Or maybe as punishment."  
  
"Hold on, Dus," Duston suddenly interjected. "Destoria is exclusively Destruction, right? How does it do time manipulation or teleportation?"  
  
"I think the answer to that is that they each have their own preferred domains that they'll work with exclusively," Harry said. "But they probably can all do very similar things."  
  
"Actually," Nepeta started. "Considering that you need all four to make the Ultimate Wish, it's possible they all partially share parts of the others' power sets."  
  
"Zo, Excluzive domainz that they do when requezted," Mazellan chimed in. "But anything goez when wizhed upon?"  
  
"Makes sense..." Equius frowned. "Hold on. Defies the flow of time, right?" Then, he tapped at a search box to type in something, and brought up a weather report.  
  


* * *

  
Kurantula stepped into the office Lothor, Garuza, and Reeling Rod Jamen were in, toying around still with the Kanaema Stone.  
  
"Well, you'll never guess what just happened this afternoon," Kurantula said.  
  
"What's that?" Garuza asked.  
  
"That guy got pulled out of a portal!" Kurantula pointed at Reeling Rod Jamen. "The Kiramagers caught him in the act stealing people away!"  
  
The three conspirators looked eachother over, and Lothor sighed. "Well, so much for Plan A! They're on to us before we even start!"  
  
Garuza looked over the table, then started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Kurantula asked, neigh, demanded.  
  
"I was just thinking about something devious, is all," Garuza said. "We should plan on losing this stone."  
  
"What?" Lothor asked- astonished. "But why would we do that for!?"  
  
"You misunderstand what I mean," Garuza laughed. "We lose a version from the future, once we have no more need of it."  
  
"...No need...?" Kurantula asked. "You've lost me, Garuza!"  
  
"I'm a tad confused too," Reeling Rod Jamen said, tilting his head. "If we've already been caught in the act... Before we've done anything...?"  
  
"Think about it," Garuza said. "The Kiramagers will assume we've lost the one and only copy of it, if instead we keep it until we have no more need of it, only to send it backwards to this very moment."  
  
"But we only HAVE the one stone!" Lothor pointed out.  
  
"Not for long," Garuza said, grabbing the stone off the table. "You detest wishes just as much as your orange sibling, don't you?"

The stone sparkled for a moment.   
  
"Good," Garuza said. "Then hear my request instead. Bring us a future version of yourself so that we may close off the time loop we've just been informed of."  
  
The Kanaema Stone darkened to pitch black instantly- a portal opened up in the air before them.  
  
Through it, they could see the ruins of the Crystalian Royal palace- a dead Alternian Clown lay bleeding out on the floor- a pool of crimson blood from an unseen corpse lay mingling with the purple. King Oladdin's body was nowhere to be seen. Neither was the past Garuza.   
  
But there was a Kanaema Stone lying, abandoned, on the floor- Reversia.  
  
"Reeling Rod," Garuza ordered. "Begin your practice."  
  
Reeling Rod nodded, and cast a line through the portal. When he reeled it back in, he had the glimmering form of Kanaema Stone Reversia in his hand once more. The portal snapped shut a moment later.  
  
"Woah! A second one!" Kurantula gasped.  
  
"But the First's gone dark," Lothor pointed out. "We can't use it!"  
  
"The stones will recover their shine eventually," Garuza said, pointing at the fully restored stone in Reeling Rod's hands. "That one proves it." He then turned towards Lothor, and said, "When the time comes, Reversia will activate again. That will be our time to strike with it."  
  
"Fair enough," Lothor mused, considering it for a moment. "But why was it in that ruined palace? And who was that dead Alternian?"  
  
"Who knows," Garuza lied. "I certainly didn't recognize the scene."  
  
Kurantula knew Garuza's tells when he saw them, but kept his mouth shut. Well, rather, instead, he grinned like a loon. "Well, now, tomorrow's going to be very interesting, isn't it?"  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 3RD, 2012.**  
  
It was raining over the city of Sardines...  
  
And as it rained, a certain clothing store was having its grand opening sale.  
  
Outside said store, a woman handed out flyers to customers, announcing such a thing.  
  
And then in walked Reeling Rod Jamenshi, wearing his mask, surrounded by Bechats, and marching with a purpose towards an area just outside the shop.  
  
Rain pelted the civilians as they ran, and the monsters as they approached. A gust of wind blew a flyer onto Reeling Rod's back.  
  
"Now then, Kanaema Stone, Reversia, with you power, please let me have a peaceful, easy round of human fishing!" He placed the stone in his bag as a portal opened- blooming gold and then shifting white as yellow and red and blue sparkles filled it in.  
  
[He cast his rod into the portal,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba7.png) and began pulling people through it from various points in time over the last few days, reeling them in with the reel built into his mask.

"Got One! And a Two! And a three and a four! A five! And a siiiix! And a-- ah-!" He got caught. "Oh drat."  
  
He fought back against the line tugging at him, and then---  
  
Then he got bodily yanked through the portal into the past.  
  
A splash of water burst forth from the portal-   
  
_"You Bastaaaaaard!"_  
  
-and out came our fishing mask themed Jamenshi.  
  
He hit the ground, water splashing everywhere, and the Kiramagers looked on in surprise.  
  
"I'll just get to safety!" Aradia said, running off.  
  
"Well well, there's a Jamenshi afterall," Tomo said, taunting the monster.  
  
The Kiramagers ran in- fighting against the Jamenshi-- but their attacks just slipped right off of him.  
  
"Why is he so wet!?" Harry asked.  
  
Tomo got kicked into a table. "OW!"  
  
Equius grabbed the fishing rod, and held it down while Harry came in to grapple- it didn't work- just slipping off.  
  
Harley came loose from the fight with a flyer in hand- "What the- Grand Opening?"   
  
Reeling Rod turned to look at the portal, and saw it closing. "Ooops! My time's up!" He slash attacked at the Kiramagers- stunning them for a moment- then leaped into the portal, which closed behind him a moment later.  
  
He landed back in the Present, exhausted from the tussle. "Time Loops are so annoying!" He said.  
  
"Ain't they just?" Said Tomo Strider, and Reeling Rod turned around, seeing the Kiramagers standing there, all six of them, dry as a day as the rain had let up during the time Reeling Rod was in the past.   
  
"Oh... just when I thought I shook you off, you reel me back in!" Reeling Rod complained. "I'd ask how you figured out I was here, but... I screwed up somehow, didn't I?"  
  
"You had a flyer stuck to your back," Equius said, holding up a dried, crumpled flyer from the day before. "It told us exactly where you'd be."  
  
"It- Oh!" The jamenshi looked around. "I did screw up royaly, there. That's somehow worse than those pesky Seers of yours!"  
  
"Reversia has the power to defy time," Tomo explained. "Which means it ahs the power to return to the past, and also the future. It's a two way tunnel. You used that power to send the fishing lines back to grab people. Though, bad choice choosing today of all days."  
  
"The fact that you were wet, plus the fact it was raining today," Equius continued, "besides the flyer? It told us everything we needed to know."  
  
"Well, since you found me out, I guess now we'll fight!" Reeling Rod declared, grabbing Reversia and taunting them with it. "As long as I have this stone, I'm not afraid of you!" He held it out, and the stone gleamed brightly, even as if it hadn't just been used. "Go, my underlings!" He ordered the Bechats forwards...  
  
"Let's go!" Equius called out, tapping his morpher.  
  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI GO!/ SHINE!"_**_  
  
["KIRAMEI CHANGE!" the six called out, morphing](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY).

"Inspriation Sparkling!" Atsuya called out, rolling into battle, slashing at Bechats.   
  
**[I'm sure we met fortuitously, In order to sparkle]**  
  
He kicked at them, and flipped around to avoid strikes. Ran at a wall, leaped back, and slashed.  
  
"Kiramei Red!"  
  
 **[So we'll polish up our scratches-]**  
  
"Guided Shooting!" Tomo rolled over a Bechat's back, tackled them to the ground, and then fired up at more Bechats.  
  
 **[Mashin Sentai Kiramager]**  
  
"Kiramei Yellow!" They hit the Bechat they'd tackled with the gun, and flipped over back to their feet.  
  
Tomo shot more Bechats- transitioning us over to Harley.  
  
 **[I draw the first line- On a fresh sketch book,]**  
  
"Rush Lighting!" she swung and dashed, getting low, and slashing the back of a Bechat's Knee at one point.  
  
She kept speeding through them, blitz striking with fury and energy: shouting her name: "KIRAMEI GREEN!"  
  
 **[And feel as if I can go anywhere!]**  
  
Nepeta was next, breaking order slightly- "Deft Incredible!" she danced around them, while-  
  
 **[My Roaring Imagination is an Engine]**  
  
Tying down a Bechat, she fired at others. "Kiramei Pink!"  
  
 **[As I draw my dream]**  
  
She spun around from more Bechats, firing away at them- and the scene transitioned over to-  
  
 **[Even if it doesn't reach the outside world!]**  
  
Harry slashed at Bechats, and ran at a wall- "PIERCING SHINING!"   
  
**[Actually, I wish, I could ignore those eyes staring around me,]**  
  
Harry leaped off of said wall, kicking at Bechats, and swinging Shiny Breaker around to attack them. "KIRAMEI SILVER!"  
  
 **[And shout out, Make a dash! Yes! I feel it, Let's Sparkle!!]**  
  
"SHARPENED UNSTOPPABLE!" Equius came swinging in, attacking the Jamenshi. "KIRAMEI BLUE!"  
  
The Jamenshi started punching at Equius, and he blocked with his sword.  
  
 **[Grab hold of the wind that begins in the future,]**  
  
Equius slashed at the Jamenshi--  
  
 **[And ascend with that Flash of Kiramental!]**  
  
And then backflipped away when it tried to attack him again.  
  
 **[It's the power to believe in what we love!]**  
  
"Here's a preview of my next staring role-" Equius declared, striking some poses. "A fishing Comedy."  
  
 **[I'm sure we met fortuitously in order to sparkle]**  
  
He held out his sword- it glowing brightly with Kiramental. "Hook me, and I'll hook you back. Now behold the divine touch of my right hand!"  
  
 **[So we'll polish up our scratches-]**  
  
The sword glowed- transforming into a fishing rod line.  
  
 **_"KIRAMEI CHARGE!"_**  
  
 _ **[Mashin Sentai Kiramager]**_  
  
Equius lashed out- and the hook darted straight into the Jamen's fishing bag, snagging the Kanaema Stone, and yanking it backwards into Equius' grip.

_**_"CHECKMAGE!"_** _

"Oh damn it!" the Jamenshi swore as a portal tore open.  
  
Nepeta and Harley ran in, attacking the Bechats hounding the displaced fished up people.  
  
"You're safe now!" Harley advised the people as the Bechats were dispatched.  
  
"Please head back to your proper times!" Nepeta said.  
  
"Thank you so much!" A drenched woman said as she lead the others through the portal.  
  
The Kiramagers came together then, and Atsuya declared, "Let's finish this!"   
  
"ARRIVING IN A FLASH!" The team began to announce.  
  
"How Dare You Roll Call At Me While We're Fighting!" The Jamenshi drew his fishing rod- and swung at them- smashing the ground with explosions.  
  
"DISPATCHING EVIL WITH A BLAST!" They shouted- leaping over the ensuing spark explosions.  
  
Equius rolled in to finish the job- "MASHIN SENTAI!"   
  
He swung his sword in- locking up the Jamenshi's rod with a twisting parry- then he disarmed the Jamenshi and punched him away from it- and once disarmed, he held the Jamenshi in place. "NOW, EVERYONE!"  
  
Harry tapped Shiny Breaker- **__"ONE BEAM CHARGE! GLAD TO DO IT!"__**  
  
The Kiramagers readied their weapons- ** __"KIRAMEI CHARGE! KIRAKIRAMEI CHARGE!"__**  
  
Atsuya and Tomo had the Kiramei Busters, Harley had her sword, and Nepeta had her blaster.  
  
"KIRAMAGER!" The six rangers shouted- and five weapons fired off at once.  
  
Equius leaped away and let the energy blasts colide with the Jamenshi head on.  
  
"GO- FIIIIIIIIIIISHINNNNNNNG!" Reeling Rod shouted as he exploded.  
  
 _ **_"ONE JOB DONE!"/"CHECKMAGE!"_**_  
  
The Kiramagers regrouped, and Equius handed Harry the Kanaema Stone. "Here, take this to the Beltus where it'll be safe. We'll stay for the inevitable Jamenju."  
  
"Got it," Harry nodded, and took off.

* * *

In the flooded ruins of the SGC, Kurantula stomped his feet into the water- "Damn it damn it damn it!!! What was with that flashy mid battle role call like that!? They didn't even POSE FOR IT!!!"  
  
He grabbed a mask. _**"Fine! MAXIMUM INSURANCE COVERAGE!"**_  
  
The Staff that wasn't anywhere near full completed itself to the red line.  
  
"It's time for the Strongest Jamenju I've come up with yet!" Kurantula threw his staff forwards. _**"GO! MY SPEEDY MOTORBOAT!!"**_

* * *

A Boat like object came hurtling out of the sea outside Sardines,[ bursting through land, and then began hurtling down the streets.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba10.png)  
  
"What the heck's that!?" Harley asked as the Kiramagers ran into an area they could see it moving.  
  
"A motor boat?!" Equius asked.  
  
"That thing's way too big!" Tomo objected.  
  
"Besides that, it's on the street like some kind of land shark," Nepeta observed.

And then it burst forth from the ground with a burst of water spraying everywhere-- [It was indeed a Jamenju, the one with the claws and the vaguely fish scaled body](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba11.png).   
  
It probably was the type that had the fish head underneath the mask too, for that matter.  
  
"Well, there's the inevitable," Equius said simply.  
  
The Jamenju unleashed some eye beams upon the costal city- blasting at buildings everywhere it could.  
  
Needless to say, it only got three shots off before the familiar cry of "MASHIIIN!" occurred.  
  
 _ **_"MASHIN GATTAI!"_**_  
  
Five became one, and forming up opposite the Jamenju was our old steady pal-  
  
 _ **_"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"_**_  
  
They ran in, and Equius swung- Jetta struck true against the Jamenshi once- then got blocked on the second strike!  
  
The Jamenju rammed them with its head- "OW!" Heliko shouted, taking the brunt of the impact.  
  
Atsuya made a sharp turn of the wheel- Fiya kicked out- gaining some breathing distance for a moment.   
  
Shovellow bloocked a strike- but the second one hit Heliko again- "AGAIN!?"   
  
"LADDER BEYOND!" Atsuya shouted- and Kiramagein launched the ladder arm out---  
  
The Jamenju ducked with a spray of water, becoming a boat that rocketed around the streets once more.  
  
It circled around behind them before they knew where it was- hiding behind buildings to keep out of sight.  
  
Then, it roared- and they turned around to see it ramming at them again- ** _SPLOOOSH!-_** it emerged from the ground with another burst of water, [slashing at Kiramagein as it blew past them.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage20-zaba9.png)

"What the-!?" Harley shouted.  
  
"A surprise attack!?" Equius asked.  
  
The jamenju rocketed down a street as a motor boat yet again, breaking a bridge in the process, and then it made a sudden U-turn- blowing back past the same bridge before the explosion had even cleared.  
  
"MAHHA BEAM!" Harley spun her wheel.  
  
Mahha flashed red- "TASTE THE FIRE!" Mahha shouted- launching energy blasts at the Jamenju.  
  
Beams that it dodged- swerving from side to side faster than Mahha could track it.  
  
And then it returned fire- opening a salvo with Torpedos that struck Kiramagein all over- BWAM BWAM BWAM!  
  
"WYAAAAHHH!" They mashin shouted.  
  
"It's too fast!" Harley realized. "We can't do this without Ghost Express!"  
  
"We should call for Jouki!" Tomo started- but then more explosions rocked across the Megazord, and then they got rammed from another jumping attack.  
  
They didn't get a chance. The Jamenju wasn't going to give them time to recover while it had them on the ropes.  
  
Kiramagein hit the ground with a thud.   
  
The Jamenju stood above them, stomped forwards, and then stomped down onto them.  
  
 ** _"WHY-!"_ **Heliko shouted between stomps that hit her prime and center _ **"MEEE!?"**_   
  
_**_"DRIJAN!"_**_  
  
And then the call of the Silver Ranger's Mecha teleporting in made the Jamenju whirl, snarl, and then dive into the streets- driving away towards the coast line and out past where Drijan could even reasonably think of following it.  
  
"Damn it!" Harry swore as he pulled to a stop at the coast- watching as the Motor Boat sped out into sea, far, far far away past his easy reach.   
  
_**TO BE CONTINUED...**_  
  


* * *

  
 **KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!**  
  
Kurantula laughed, "Jamenju Motorboat Basura!"  
  
Garuza laughed- "Behold those Claws! That boat! The splashing waves!"  
  
Kurantula roared- "THE STRONGEST!"  
  


* * *

  
 **NEXT KIRAMAGER!**  
  
"With that Jamenju on the loose, can we even save the Princess?" Harry asked.  
  
"We're going to have to go back in time!" Atsuya called out.  
  
"SERIOUSLY!?" Tomo and Harley asked.  
  
"MASHIIIIIIIN!" Jouki cried out.  
  
"A new super star is born!" Equius cried forth with far more emotion than was necessary.  
  
 **NEXT EPISODE: 21: "Let me tell you how it all works out." (Part 2)**  
  
"Let's Sparkle Next Time, Too!" Esprez cheered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooo. This one was like, 90% a straight up plot adaptation beat for beat of most of the original episode. Had to save on the production costs somewhere lol. *Tomato'd*
> 
> Ah, but ANYWAYS. YEAH. Garuza has a copy of Reversia, and he's ensure the Kiramagers get ONE version of it- a future version, after who knows HOW many time loops or shenanigans it's been put through.
> 
> I'm *SURE* Garuza will use this responsibly. Right? Right??
> 
> ...Right?
> 
> ...Oh who am I kidding, we all know he's going to do something shady with Reversia the moment that stone's able to open a portal again.  
> \---  
> Carry doesn't get much of a role in this first part, but she'll get a bigger role in the next half. 
> 
> Speaking of roles- Hey hey! Jouki's awake! About time THAT plot thread finally ended. You've napped enough, my shiny aqua friend. 
> 
> Speaking of Jouki, it's a fun bit of meta inversion- Mashin Express is what Jouki's original face looked like, pretty much, so just imagine a purple Express for Jouki's head. In terms of 'practicality' reasons, for a show on a limited CGI budget, it's cheaper to replace Jouki's dino head with a recolored Express. Also, [Spoiler Redacted] that's [spoiler redacted] and I happen to think that's [spoiler redacted].
> 
> ...*opens mouth*
> 
> [spoiler redacted]
> 
> ...Oh, fine. I'll keep it quiet. XP
> 
> \---
> 
> So! Yeah. Motor Boat Basura. Now there's a power house of a beast. Sometimes I really enjoy these thematic linked masks- they just make so much sense.   
> \---
> 
> The staff on Kiramager have joked that these two episodes basically fall under the Summer Movie Plot Umbrella- and honestly? I get the impression that this probably WAS the Summer Movie Plot originally before plans changed somewhat. The usual Summer Movie Mecha Release slot was filled with this Mecha that we're about to see going forwards. 
> 
> I think somewhere along the lines the writers decided to just incorporate the plot into the actual series progression, rather than being nebulously tied in. Likely in the designing phase for the Mecha themselves. I can't blame them. It's one danged fine mecha we're getting going forwards. (Zazazazaaaabyuuuun!) Very pretty. Such grace.
> 
> So, despite this happening in December, in universe, I'm officially designating this as, in whatever universe this story of mine is the official kiramager and/or power rangers adaptation, the official Summer Movie.
> 
> Huh? Why yes, it's a Summer Movie taking place in December.
> 
> ...What? Am I mad? 
> 
> ...Do I look like I care about seasonal relevance at this point? *motions at face* does this look like the face of someone who cares about making a December set episode be a Summer movie? No. it does not. I do not care about the Seasonal Dissonance. 
> 
> So here's a Summer Movie In December. I'm Mad, so what?
> 
> \---
> 
> The Next Chapter is INTERMISSION: Averaged Danger Quota
> 
> It's another one where I talk to Dirk- in half, at least. The other half is Mei being Mei.
> 
> That will probably go up tomorrow... Not tonight. I'm a bit too scatterbrained after editing this chapter for another bit of posting right after. You all can wait a while for the meta here. 
> 
> \---
> 
> So! If you aren't following me directly, you may not have noticed but last night I posted a chapter of the Luna Lovegood focused Harry Potter/URU crossover fic. I'll be intersplicing chapters of that with chapters of this for the next while, but I have. Uh. Zero upload schedule. So. IDK! Just doing a blatantly shameless self promotion here, I guess??
> 
> Uhhh. OH! Hiveswap Act 2 comes out on the 25th of this month!! That's. Something to look forwards too, lol.


	8. INTERMISSION: Averaged Danger Quota

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dirk and the Traveler talk; Mei tries on accessories.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Dirk Strider.  
> Meta talk.  
> Identity exploration.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 3RD, 2012.**  
  
Dirk Strider sat at a cafe in the town of Sardines, sipping on his glass of orange soda, as he watched a certain Fishing Rod themed monster get yanked into his own time portal.  
  
"Well," he said, sipping on his orange soda even more. "That was an interesting pull on the old Gatcha wheel of fortune."  
  
"Wasn't it?" The Traveler said, sitting across from him, chin resting on the palms of their hands as they gazed out the window. "Ah... And the rain should be stopping... Now."  
  
The rain indeed started to peter out and disperse- and soon, sunlight was shining down on the city once more.  
  
"What's this now?" Dirk raised an eyebrow, "Tired of the wet weather already?"  
  
"Don't play dumb, I gotta match source footage," The Traveler pouted, and then grabbed their glass of root beer, sipping away.  
  
"I thought you were rewriting basically these whole two episodes?" Dirk asked, smirking.  
  
"A! It's a Zord Debut Episode," The Traveler raised a finger, "and B:" A second finger raised, " I'm burning a lot of original footage on the parts I have to rewrite. It's cost effective to use what I can. Tried and True Power Rangers formula, here."  
  
"You don't even have any costs," Dirk pointed out. "You're not paying any of them for this."  
  
"I'm not?" The Traveler blinked. "I swear I set it up so that these kids were getting paid compensation for their work. All of them, I mean. Not just the Kiramagers."  
  
"You did?" Dirk asked. "First I'm hearing of this."  
  
"I swear I set it up," the Traveler frowned. "No, I'll make sure they're getting paid now, even if I didn't set it up before. That's something I intended from the start and will retcon in if I didn't make it happen to begin with."  
  
"So That's your limit on Retconning?" Dirk asked, astonished.  
  
"When it comes to things I intended from the start but forgot about? Yes," The Traveler nodded, seriously. "That said, if you're yanking my chain just to get me to pay them more, then fine. I'll make it happen. Nudge a thought over to Keiko and Argo after today... get them thinking about bonus pay..." They smirked. "There. Wheels are turning, gears in motion. Even if I never mention it in text again, those kids are getting bonus hazard pay now."  
  
Dirk scowled. "You're being really stubborn on this point."  
  
"If there's one department I'll GLADLY be better about in the Power Rangers Production standpoint, it's treating my cast and crew right," The Traveler countered. "It's a personal thing of mine to do what I love, but better."  
  
There was a splash of water from the portal, and out came the Reeling Rod Jamenshi.  
  
"Ah, here we go," The Traveler said. "Sparks are about to fly. Time to see if I got the timing of everything right."  
  
"What's with the sudden voyeuristic urge to be in our world while things are happening?" Dirk asked. "As far as I can tell, reviewing everything, you avoided it like the plague."  
  
"I gave it some thought, and decided June needed a valid target to punch in the face after the stupid fumbling with the whole Ninja team," The Traveler answered.  
  
"That's it?" Dirk asked. "That's all this is??"  
  
"Hussie fumbled around and screwed around and darted around and did all kinds of things with his Insert," The Traveler answered. "It was a Role to him. Whether he took it seriously or not he came off as a Joke and 'died' like one, too. Avoiding responsibility. Nobody knew who he was when he did meddle directly with them."  
  
"Couldn't let the Wizard Of Oz thing go," Dirk shook his head. "Hiding behind curtains and shit." he stopped- as an explosion rocketed out from a certain area.   
  
"Ah, we missed it," The Traveler hung their head.  
  


* * *

Mei gazed at her own reflection in the full body length mirror of the room she owned in Atlantis.  
  
The room was sparsely decorated, but what was there were things that Mei felt were key towards piecing her identity together.  
  
Slowly, but surely, she'd been shifting her wardrobe options around for her Civilian/off duty outfits, trying to see what felt more right than not.  
  
Of course, nothing did quite feel right. The more modern cloth types and style cuts of Earth-Alternia born styles were just too... too... clean and smooth?   
  
Mei was of the opinion that if she had been a Crystalian in her past life before becoming a Kiramei stone, then she was probably completely out of luck recovering any sense of fashion that way, but if she had been born something else before then...  
  
Then surely there had to be something that would click, right?  
  
Today, though, she wasn't focusing on that sort of thing, however. Today, she was focusing on accessories.  
  
Namely, the headband with fake dog ears on it that she picked up off of the dresser and held up to her face to examine.  
  
Lately, whenever the Ranger teams came together for some mission or another, Mei wound up looking at Harry and feeling some sense of resonance that wasn't a part of the fact he actually had a large chunk of kiramei stone in his body that had definitely come from the same source of stone in her body AND in J's body as well. (She didn't get this kind of resonating feeling from J, after all.) It had taken some time for her to decide down to the idea that it was something about his appearance giving him that feeling.  
  
And so she was starting with the blatantly obvious- Harry Anderson Harley-Lalonde had dog ears, and so she wanted to see if that triggered anything in the back of her mind if SHE appeared to have dog ears as well.  
  
She put on the headband- black, fake fur covered triangles pointed out from what would normally be considered silver hued hair if what she had ontop of her head were actually hair and not chunks of stone shaped to look like hair.  
  
(Mei was not at all jealous of little Mashin Carry for actually being able to summon a form with real hair. Not in the slightest.)  
  
Mei looked at her reflection, with the ears sticking up from her head, and she raised her hands up to her shoulder level, clenched lightly into paw like fists.  
  
"Bark, bark," she said flatly.  
  
Her eyes blinked tiredly.  
  
"...This is stupid," she admitted. "And while surprisingly cute, I don't feel like this is a match, either."  
  
She took off the headband, deciding that the wolf ears probably wasn't it.  
  
Next up would be the cat ears headband, because if not wolf ears, maybe cat ears?  
  
She tried it the same, headband on, paw-shaped fists raised, "Nyan nyan," she said with just as flat a tone of voice as the last one.   
  
"...No, it's not the cat ears either."  
  
She took them off even faster than the wolf ears, and wondered what head accessory object to try next.

* * *

  
"Well, look alive, here comes the swimming, roaring, JAWS reference," Dirk said, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder.  
  
Portal opened, and the Traveler laughed as the Boat head mask emerged from it.  
  
"JAWS? Yes, I can see the reference," the Traveler sighed, shaking their head. "But that's no Shark. It's a Basura."  
  
"Did you seriously paraphrase Star Wars for that joke, or am I mishearing things?" Dirk asked.  
  
The Traveler gave the Mathematician's Answer: "Yes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first half of this one is mainly just set up for a joke in the NEXT Meta chapter, as well as me poking fun at the tried and true Power Rangers adaptation formulas, cost cutting, etc...
> 
> But I am paying these kids by ensuring that the people who teach them and supervise them get paid.  
> \---  
> Mei is exploring her self-identity a bit here, trying to figure things out. This one will probably be a bit funnier in hindsight once we get to the end of act.
> 
> ...maybe. IDK.
> 
> \---
> 
> Next chapter: MSK: 01X21: "Let me tell you how it all works out." (Part 2)
> 
> See you.... whenever that goes live.


	9. MSK: 01X21: "Let me tell you how it all works out." (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Concusion. The Kiramagers fight on two fronts for two separate reasons; The Azure Dragon appears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Time Travel.  
> Time Loop.  
> Repetitive scenes.  
> Intense fight sequences.  
> Picture embedding and linkage.  
> Hit and Run.

**_PREVIOUSLY ON MASHIN SENTAI KIRAMAGER:_ **   
_\---_   
_"Come to me- Kanamea Stone!!" Garuza threw a hand out and caught the approaching light before it impacted anything._   
_A flare of light seared against his gloved hand, and when Garuza opened it, a gleaming, smoking, claw shaped gemstone resided within it._   
_\---_   
_"Shark-type species have an amazing ability that helps them find food," The tour guide spoke. "They have electroreceptors called- the 'Ampullae of Lorenzini'-"_   
_\---_   
_Mabushiina was gasping for air as a purple shine of dark magic flared up in her right eye._   
_"What the...?" Atsuya stared on, watching as the flare up took on the shape of a familiar logo. "The Bechat Mask glyph!?"_   
_\---_   
_Esprez hovered, full size, next to the slumbering Aqua Kiramei Stone... and then nudged forwards, lightly tapping her surface to his._   
_"My friend," She began, "It's time for you to wake up."_   
_\---_   
_"We called her Numaajo, the Witch of the Stagnant Sea," Jouki narrated._   
_\---_   
_Necrolai was sparking- and laughing. "I sacrifice my life to your family to die as many painful deaths as I've suffered today, KING OF CRYSTALIA!!"_   
_She fell- and exploded._   
_\---_   
_Equius reeled in the second Kanaema Stone, Reversia, from Reeling Rod Jamen._   
_\---_   
_MotorBoat Basura stomped on Kiramagein, only to stop as Drijan arrived on the scene._   
_"Damn it!" Harry shouted as the boat-themed Jamenju escaped to sea._

* * *

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 3RD, 2012.**  
  
Kiramagein got to its feet as the Jamenju roared off to sea... and then colapsed as the Gattai fell apart.  
  
The five Mashin hit the ground, groaning in pain after the beating they'd taken.  
  
"What power..." Tomo stared on.  
  
"We're way too slow!" Harley groaned.  
  
"Everyone, are you alright!?" Nepeta asked, looking around.  
  
"We took a lot of damage," Equius grunted.  
  
"Everyone, back to the Beltus," Atsuya decided. "The Mashin are at their limits!"  
  


* * *

  
_"When People Shine!" Mashin Fiya narrated, "Miracles are Born!"_   
  
_"Kiramental!" He continued. "The proof of Warriors who can Change the Future!"_   
  
_"Tension Maxed!" he shouted- "KIRAMEI GO!!!"_

[ _MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

Onboard the Beltus, Mabushiina awoke, groaning to consciousness.   
  
"Easy there, Princess," Marsti said, approaching her. "You've been through quite the ordeal."  
  
"What's..." Mabushiina weakly muttered. "What's going on?"  
  
Marsti smiled- but it was a false smile. "Don't you worry. We'll have you fixed up in no time."  
  


* * *

  
The polishing machines were at work on the core five Kiramei Stones, and Carry had her hands and face pressed against the window as she watched the repair work progress at rapid speed.  
  
Behind her, the Kiramagers, battered, but not beaten, stood around the hologram table.  
  
"So, we've got the Kanaema Stone now," Harley started, gazing at the crystal on the table. "Why don't we just go back in time and prevent the curse from happening to begin with?"  
  
"If we do that, history will change too much," Tomo shook their head. "We screw things up too badly, we'll disrupt all the pre-existing timeloops that made our present even possible."  
  
"The Continuum Incident," Nepeta summarized.  
  
"What's that?" Jouki asked.  
  
"A Goa'uld named Ba'al used a Time Machine to deliberately alter the past, severing countless timeloops," Equius summarized. "It was only because a few key members of a certain team were traveling during a wormhole during the rupture that they were able to put the timeline right again."  
  
"Of course, all of that was a pre-existing timeloop in and of itself," Nepeta shook her head. "Our own reality exists based on the very fact that it almost didn't because of that severance."  
  
"So we use the Reset Button to ensure we don't cease to exist," Atsuya decided. "if we screw it up badly, we just reset to the beginning."  
  
"We might need that anyways," Tomo said. "We don't know how long a portal made by Reversia lasts for."  
  
"...That might work," Jouki said- his new aqua stone form lifting into the air. "If I have the ability to counteract curses, and I learn how Numaajo's curses work by intercepting that fatal curse... then we reset, I keep the knowledge but we don't violate history..." he moaned- "Awh! But then I leave the King's Family to be cursed again!!"  
  
"We need to do this as a practice run, anyways," Atsuya said. "For the Other Loop."   
  
"Huh?" Jouki asked, turning to look at him. "What do you mean?"  
  
"We'll have to do it because of me," Esprez said. "My stone fragments have to be recovered from Crystalia at some point still."  
  
"...Oh, right," Jouki hummed. "That's something strange too, isn't it?"  
  
"We have to split up," Harry decided. Carry looked away from the window as he said that, then continued, "That Jamenju is still lurking about. If it comes back to attack again, we'll need people here to stop it."  
  
"Agreed," Atsuya nodded, he looked to Tomo and Harley. "Would you two come with me to the past?"  
  
"Beyond the fact you'll need me anyways," Tomo scoffed. "Today's my birthday and we get to do time travel? Of course I'm in!"  
  
"As if I'd miss out on this either?" Harley asked. "Besides, if we wind up far away we might need my teleporting powers!"  
  
"I'm coming too!" Carry decided suddenly, running up to join them after abandoning the window.  
  
"Us too!" And then Lifton and Rolland floated into view over Carry's shoulders.  
  
"Let's stab us a witch!" Lifton shouted.  
  
"Language!" Rolland admonished. "Let's roll her out to sea instead!!"  
  
"We'll stay here, Dus!" Duston volunteered.  
  
"Yeah! We'll Blazt that jamenju to bitz!" Mazellan agreed.  
  
"I'll stay behind as well, as much as I want to go," Esprez said. "If that Jamenju returns, and Harry can't beat it alone, we'll need Mashin Express' speed."  
  
"I'll be your pilot, then," Nepeta said, smiling as she stepped forwards. She offered her hand, palm up, and asked "Partners for the moment?"  
  
"Partners for the moment," Esprez nodded, and landed on Nepeta's hand.  
  
"You'd best get ready to go," Equius said, looking to Atsuya. "The sooner you head out, the sooner you get back."  
  
"Right," Atsuya nodded, then, looking to Jouki. "Are you ready, Jouki?"  
  
"Definitely," the stone answered with a nod, "But... if we're in a point where I'll be in two places at once, maybe call me something else going forwards?"  
  
Atsuya smiled. "I'll think of something when we arrive."  
  
"Let's go save us a princess," Tomo said, clapping their hands.  
  
"Let's!" Harley punched a fist into the air, and then grabbing the kanaema stone off the table.  
  


* * *

  
The full sized Aqua Kiramei Stone rocketed out of Drijan's zord bay- out into space.  
  
"Kanaema Stone!" He shouted. "Reversia... Please bring us back to that time just before the assault on Numaajo!"  
  
Standing inside the stone's echoing interior, Atsuya, Tomo, and Harley stood, with the Weapon Mashin Trio hovering over their shoulders in stone form.   
  
Atsuya held out Reversia, and the stone glowed brightly.  
  
A golden rift opened before them, blooming brightly above Earth C with historical significance... then it was overwhelmed with white, red, yellow, and blue.  
  
The Aqua Stone rocketed forwards through the rift, vanishing through it entirely.  
  


* * *

  
Garuza eyed the event from afar via a hologram screen with some confusion. "...Where did they find an Aqua Kiramei Stone?" he asked aloud.  
  
"Does it matter?" Lothor asked. "They have something they immediately went after with it. The City should be defenseless unless they did the reasonable thing and split their forces."  
  
"Let's return Motorboat Basura to the city, quietly," Garuza decided. "Have it restock on its food while it's at it so It can be at full strength." He looked to Kurantula, who nodded, and scampered off to do just that.

* * *

 **A THOUSAND YEARS IN THE PAST... GIVE OR TAKE THREE TO FIVE...**  
  
The portal opened, and the Aqua stone emerged from it, before jettisoning his pasengers, and shrinking down to a smaller, manageable size.  
  
"This is Crystalia?" Carry asked, looking around at the grey and transformed wilderness.   
  
"A corrupted, twisted version of it," The Aqua Stone answered. "But yeah. This is Numaajo's realm that she carved out."  
  
"It's super creepy," Harley said, shuddering.  
  
"We can reminisce about it later," Tomo said, tapping their Morpher, and holding their hand out. "Let's start the loop."  
  
Everyone put a hand onto Tomo's, or floated over to touch said stack of hands.  
  
"One Ohm of Pressure," Tomo struck the wheel. It did the chime, and then cried out:  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
A familiar train roar cried out, and the group looked upwards.  
  
"Speaking of creepy," the Aqua Stone muttered, seeing his past self rocket overhead. "I'm not going to get used to that when we get out of here, am I?"  
  
"Probably not," Rolland answered.  
  
"Let's follow along and see how things play out without us first," Atsuya decided.   
  
"MASHIIN!" Carry floated over to the ground, and transformed into her truck form, but kept to human scale, rather than Megazord scale. "Let's go!"  
  
Everyone climbed onto the back of her bed, and held on for dear life as Carry drove off after the past self of Mashin Jouki.  
  


* * *

  
**THE PRESENT DAY.**  
  
The smoldering, still partially on fire city of Sardines lay in background as the Kiramagers approached a harbor from the sea.

There was Motorboat Basura's mask, resting in the water as if it were, well, just a regular boat.  
  
"Why'd it pull into the bay and stop for?" Harry asked, gazing at it,  
  
"Kiramei Vision!" Nepeta activated her visor, and gazed into the water. She saw hordes of fish being sucked into its mouth. "It's eating fish? A lot of fish, actually. How fishy!"  
  
"I could use Gigant Driller and hit it from below," Harry decided, readying his morpher--  
  
"I won't let you!" Garuza declared.  
  
The three Kiramagers turned, and looked, and there was Garuza approaching, a horde of Bechats at his side.  
  
"Garuza," Harry growled.

"Motorboat Basura uses a huge amount of energy to phase into the ground," Garuza explained. "So while it recharges, I'll be your opponent!"  
  
And then he and the Bechats ran forwards to do battle.  
  
"I'll do what needs to be done!" Harry declared, as Equius drew his sword and Nepeta her blaster. "Let's go!"  
  
They ran to meet them in battle.  
  


* * *

  
 **THE PAST. (PAST) (Past) (past)...**  
  
Oladdin and Mabayuine were already battling against the horde of vampyric psudo bechats when the Kiramagers arrived to observe the scene.  
  
"Does anyone recognize the witch?" Atsuya asked, eyeing the altered form of Necrolai as she commanded her minions.  
  
"No, but her voice sounds familiar..." Tomo frowned.  
  
"GAAAARHGH!" Necrolai shouted. "You heroic types always get in my way!" She glared upwards at Jouki, orbiting overhead.  
  
"Here it comes," the Aqua stone said. "The part where I black out."  
  
"Fortunately, I learn from how my comrades are defeated!" Necrolai snapped her fingers- and something burst forth from the sea- a dark, blood red gemstone that transformed with a roar of a train whistle.   
  
Its face... it's face was literally a more twisted version of the face of Smog Jouki that the Kiramagers were familiar with. Its crimson eyes let loose upon Jouki- paralyzing him from behind, and forcing him into submission.  
  
"That's Mashin Express!?" Harley gasped.  
  
"With the face Garuza gave me on it!?" the Aqua stone gasped.  
  
"What the-!?" Oladdin stared upwards in shock.

"My turn, now!" Necrolai laughed as she launched into the air, and landed inside the blood red Kiramei Stone Mashin. "Necrotic Gattai!"  
  
The two Mashin began combining together, creating a wholey evil looking Mecha.   
  
"Ready, Yodom Express!"  
  
"Reset! Reset!" Carry shouted as the evil megazord raised its foot and went to stomp down on the King and Queen.  
  
Tomo didn't hesitate, spinning their morpher.  
  
 _ **_"REIN-!"_**_  
  
 _ **FWASH!**_  
  
 _ **_"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
Jouki's train whistle blew overhead as everyone looked up.  
  
"MASHIN!" Carry transformed without prompting and everyone climbed on, taking off at much faster speeds than before, hoping to outpace the incoming train based collision.  
  
"What the hell was that!?" Harley asked.  
  
"That witch is definitely from our future," Atsuya said. "She's got to be one of Gilgamesh's people- a friend of Garuza, atleast!"  
  
"The King never mentioned anything like that!" The Aqua stone stated. "This isn't how things go!"  
  
"We may have to actually interfere with events," Tomo grimaced. "Atleast to make sure they even happen the right way to begin with!"  
  
"Put the speed on, Carry!" Harley begged.  
  
"At Mach Speed!" Carry replied- accelerating faster.  
  
They arrived before Jouki did, miraculously, but not by much.  
  
As energy blasts lanced down into the ocean, startling Necrolai...  
  
"KIRAMEI CHANGE!" The Kiramagers transformed, riding into battle on the back of Mashin Carry...  
  
Who didn't stop as she targeted straight on towards Necrolai.  
  
"What the-!? YOU KIDS!?" Was all Necrolai managed before Carry ran her over so hard her body exploded into blood hued dust fragments.  
  
Carry's tires ground to a halt, and skid in the sand as they twisted to a stop.  
  
"What the-!? Another Mashin!?" Jouki above asked.  
  
"Oh no," Aqua lamented, "I don't remember this!"  
  
"We'll reset later once we know how to beat that stone!" Tomo promised.  
  
Necrolai's dust fragments reformed into her main body, and she snarled. "Kiramagers! Of course you'd come and stop me at this juncture! I suppose I succeeded in altering the future somehow to gain your attention!"  
  
"How about it's none of your business!" Atsuya pointed his sword at her. "And you tell us where the hell you got the idea for that evil Mashin Express!"  
  
"Eh!?" Necrolai startled- "How do you know about that!?" She shook her head, "Doesn't matter I suppose." She pointed at them, and called out- "My Thralls, arise and defeat these meddlesome future interlopers!"  
  
The vampyric thralls emerged from the sands, and roared towards the Kiramagers.  
  
"MASHIIIN!" The weapon mashin transformed into their weapon forms, and scaled to the Rangers.  
  
"Let's go!" Atsuya declared, wielding Carry opposite his sword.  
  
"Right!" Harley nodded, holding Rolland over her shoulders.  
  
"We'll stab you 'til you bleed!" Tomo declared, pointing Lifton at Necrolai's minions.  
  
"You're the ones who'll bleed!!" The vampire shouted in anger.  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile, as the battle roared on, Oladdin and Mabayuine stared on in confusion from within Jouki's cockpit.  
  
"...Who are those shiny warriors?" The Queen asked.  
  
"People who have a grudge against Numaajo," Oladdin said, "and thus, allies of ours!"  
  
"Let's get down there to help them, then-" Mabayuine started- when they heard a roar of another train whistle and a splash of water.  
  
Necrolai leaped into the air onto her bloodied Mashin Express.  
  
"Let's see how you like a taste of your own medici--!" Necrolai didn't get further- the Aqua stone rammed her out of the air.  
  
 _ **"TAKE THAAAAAAT!"**_ he shouted.  
  


* * *

  
"These bloodfiends are way stronger than bechats!" Tomo complained, slashing at a, well, a Bloodfiend with Lifton.  
  
"Tell me about it!" Harley shouted, smacking several aside with Rolland. "They just keep getting up again!"  
  
The King of Crystala leaped into battle, slashing away at the Bloodfiends with his sword- powered fully with Kiramental.  
  
The Queen joined him moments later.  
  
"Hello, Crimson Warrior!" Oladdin said, moving alongside Atsuya. "I see you're well versed with Kiramental!"  
  
"Hello, King Oladdin!" Atsuya said without thinking, slashing at a Bloodfiend. "Sorry to crash into your battle like this, but things aren't going well for any of us right now."  
  
"I suspected so," Oladdin mused with a chuckle and a laugh as he kicked a clawing Bloodfiend away. "Your Mashin companions are incredible, working at this scale!"  
  
"Oh, thanks!" Carry said, then- "REFLECTALOT!" She put a shield up that blasted several Bloodfiends backwards, and then projected that shield into the dirt, crushing the fiends.  
  
"You sound incredibly young!" The King was very surprised by that.   
  
**_"We know!"_** The Kiramagers and Mashin all shouted at once.  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile, above, Jouki, the Aqua Stone, and the Bloodstone Mashin dueled in the air above- with the Aqua stone absorbing blast after blast that the Bloodstone Mashin was launching at Jouki.  
  
Jouki retaliated with a blast of energy at the bloodstone Mashin. "Get away from me, you creepy thing!"  
  
It roared with anger- and Necrolai's voice. "I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!"   
  


* * *

  
"What revenge is she talking about?!" Mabayuine asked, as she fell alongside Harley.  
  
"We don't know," Harley answered, smashing a Bloodfiend flat across the face. "Just that she's probably from our time?"  
  


* * *

  
And then the Bloodstone Mashin got the better of Jouki- beaming him.  
  
"Necrotic Gattai!" Necrolai called out.  
  
"RESET!" The Aqua stone shouted.  
  
Tomo did such.  
  
 _ **_"REIN-!"_ FWASH! _"CARNATION!"_**_  
  
Carry transformed, everyone already moving to get onboard without even looking up as Jouki roared overhead.  
  
"I can't fight like this anymore!" the Aqua stone whined as Carry took off. "I'm too slow as just a stone!"  
  
"Let's try a different approach this time," Atsuya said, taking out his sketchbook. "There's just too many bloodfiends for us to fight like that!" He tapped a pencil to his chin. 'Think... think... think...!'  
  
He thought back over the last two days....  
  
Carry growled as they rolled on towards another battle at faster speeds, trying to outrace Jouki in the air...  
  
But Jouki was in the air, and they were on the ground, and Jouki was a train too.  
  
Atsuya idly reached out and patted Carry's flatbed. "It's okay, you're not fast enough if you're not a train..."  
  
Speed was the issue. But there was also that Bloodstone Mashin too... Hiding beneath the ocean, impossible to see until it was called for...  
  
 _Wait._  
  
 **A sparkle.**  
  
Atsuya remembered the aquarium. The Shark-snakes that Carry stared upwards at. The electric blue back it had... The ability sharks had to sense electromagnetic fields...!  
  
 ** _A glimmer of inspiration!!_**  
  
"EUREKAING!" He threw his hand into the air, and then started drawing it out.  
  
The Aqua Stone hovered over Atuya's shoulder, watching the drawing progress... and then...  
  
"I GOT IT!" [Atsuya held out the image for all to see.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba12.png)

The Aqua stone flared with light as the image applied to him: Speed, the ability to sense, manueveroability... Curse Learning and Cancelation.  
  


* * *

  
Energy blasts smashed into the sea as Necrolai dodged to escape.  
  
Jouki roared overhead- eyes gleaming with light as King Oladdin and Queen Mabayuine disembarked.  
  
Rain fell over them, and Necrolai snarled- "Who dares attack me!? I'm busy trying to regain my body!"  
  
"We are the King and Queen of Crystalia, and you, Witch Numaajo, are poisoning our world!" Oladdin declared.   
  
"Crystalia?" Necrolai turned her head. "Fine then!" She gathered a curse spell in hand and flung it at them.  
  
Jouki interceeded- rocketing infront and blocking the curse, and circling around, flinging it backwards into cliffs behind them.  
  
An explosion blew off on impact.  
  
"I'll dispell any curses you throw at us!" Jouki declared- eyes gleaming, ready for another laser blast.  
  
"You're rather annoying when you talk," Necrolai growled at the train. She snapped her fingers, and summoned a horde of mud covered monsters- mockup Minions with masks painted with the Bechat symbols- her army of Bloodfiend thralls.  
  
They snapped their mouths and snarlled at the Crystalian Royalty...  
  
And then they heard a train whistle- and there was an explosion from the sea- Necrolai's Bloodstone Mashin was surfacing... uncontrolled.  
  
And more than that, held within the jaws of a white bodied Mashin, striped with Red along its train body's windows- topped along the spine with electric, aqua blue crystal. Finishing it of was the surge of yellow along its head fin, and the piercing glowing gleam of its golden yellow eyes.

"MASHIIIIIN!" the transformed Aqua Kiramei Stone shouted- biting down and cracking the Bloodstone Mashin's body before tossing it aside into the wilderness.  
  
It smashed into a nearby hill and exploded, sending dirt flying everywhere.  
  
"NO!!" Necrolai shouted. "NOT MY SECRET WEAPON!!"  
  
"ORAAAAAAA!!" the Aqua stone shouted- launching eye blasts at the horde of Bloodfiends, stunning most of them and destroying a small handful of them.  
  
"Who the heck are you!?" Jouki asked of his near identically faced twin.  
  
"Mashin _Zabyuuuu~n_ at your service!" The Aqua stone introduced, circling through the air, eyes gleaming with light as he train-roared his name out.  
  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI GO!"_** _shouted through the air as three figures leaped out of the transformed Mashin, heading towards the ground. _"KI! RA! MEI!"_ announced their descent towards the ground.  
  
"KIRAMEI CHANGE!" was shouted in mid air.  
  
A flash of light and a burst of sparkles, and three suited up Kiramagers landed between the Crystalian Royalty and the Necromantic Vampyre.   
  
_**_"LET'S SPARKLE!"_**_  
  
"Arriving in a flash!" Tomo began.  
  
"NO!" Necrolai shouted.  
  
"Dispatching Evil with a Blast!" Harley continued.  
  
"NOT YOU!" Necrolai protested.  
  
"Mashin Sentai!" Atsuya called out.  
  
"KIRAMAGER!" The three rangers and the Mashin Zabyun called out as one, even as the bloodstone Mashin exploded yet again in the scenery far behind them, making for an even greater show of force.  
  
"Kiramagers!?" Mabayuine asked, surprised.  
  
"Our Legendary heroes?" Oladdin asked, equally shocked.  
  
"Damn you...!" Necrolai snarled. "You couldn't just leave it at destroying my old body with that damned Orange Stone, could you!?" She stomped her foot, and pointed at the Kiramagers. "NO! You had to come find me in the ass end of history just to destory THIS body too!"  
  
"I thought I recognized her," Tomo said, snapping their fingers. "You're that Vampire we toasted by accident with Destoria!"  
  
"The Kanaema Stone Destoria!?" Oladdin asked- startled.  
  
"Pardon our interuption, your majesty," Atsuya said, looking over his shoulder to the King. "But we have unfinished business with this Witch."  
  
"I am NOT a Witch!" Necrolai shouted. "I am Necrolai the Great Vampire! Bloodied Scourge of Giglamesh's Empire!"  
  
"Blah blah blah," Tomo put their hands on their hips. "We've heard it all before."  
  
They had not, infact, heard any of this before.  
  
"Next you're going to say something like 'wah! you may have destroyed my precious Mashin Bloodstone,' right?" Harley asked, raising her left hands index finger and tilting her head to the left.  
  
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Necrolai shouted. "How did you even know about that!?"  
  
"Trade secret!" Atsuya answered. Then- threw his left hand into the air- _"NOW! ZABYUN!"_  
  
"HENKEI!" Zabyun cried out- shrinking down in size and rocketeing down like a lightning bolt into Atsuya's awaiting hand- and when the flash of light passed by, Atsuya held a spear in his hand that was almost as tall as he was- designed after the train like appearance of Mashin Zabyun,  
  
He swung the spear forwards, and declared- "Mashin Zabyun, Spear Formation!"  
  
"Y-Your fancy weapon doesn't scare me!" Necrolai declared.  
  
It did, infact, scare her.  
  
"It should!" Harley readied her sword and Mashin Carry's shield form. ("I'll run you over! _**AGAIN!"**_ )  
  
"It really, really should," Tomo said, readying their blaster, and Rolland's hammer form. ("Let's get smashing!")  
  
Lifton emerged from the underbrush, Mashin form, but ground-scale, lift fork gleaming. "Ehehehe... It's stabby time!"  
  
"Their partners are able to work with them at that scale!?" The queen asked, observing with awe.  
  
The Bloodfiends recovered, and the Kiramagers ran into battle with a roar.

* * *

Oladdin watched in fascination as the Kiramagers began asaulting the Bloodfiends with a relentless zeal.  
  
"I... I feel kinda useless right now?" Jouki muttered from above.  
  
The Red Kiramager was spinning that spear around like a pro- jabbing through the hearts of the bloodfiends and poofing them into mud- the spear was generating its own water somehow.  
  
No, nullifying the curses??  
  
The other two were powerful as well- and so synchronized with their partner Mashin... who he did not recognize at all. New stones entirely. Young ones, by their voices as well. But their colors...   
  
Red- "YAHH!!"  
  
Yellow- "BANG!"  
  
Green- "TAKE THIS!"  
  
Three of the five destined colors.   
  
And the Kiramental resonance they gave off... yes, the King could feel it. Oladdin was sure these three were partnered with the Red, Yellow, and Green Kiramei Stones.  
  
This was definitely the first time today he'd seen them...  
  
So why did he feel an aching sense of De Ja Vu that he'd seen them once before already?  
  
So lost in his thoughts was he, that Oladdin didn't even care to notice as Lifton drove doughnuts around him and Mabayuine, ramming through Bloodfiends that dared get close to the Crystalian Royalty.  
  


* * *

  
"I'll Curse You All!" Necrolai shouted, gathering curse magic in her hands.  
  
"Our Chance!" Atsuya hurled Zabyun to Harley, who ditched her existing weapons to grab him and teleport clear across the field- past all the Bloodfiends...!  
  
"GOTCHAAAAAA!" Harley and Zabyun shouted as the spearhead pierced through Necrolai's magic curses- absorbing the spell matrixes as they shattered- and then went even further beyond, ramming through the Vampire's chest.  
  
Necrolai gasped for breath as she felt a certain soul-binding card within her shatter.  
  
"You...!" She hissed. "That's not... Fair...!"  
  
And then her transformed appearnce faded away, leaving behind an impaled Bechat that colapsed into dust moments later.  
  
The surviving Bloodfiends all grabbed at their chests, and exploded on the spot with small spurts of flames and lots of crimson smoke.  
  
Atsuya, having collected Carry, and Tomo ran over to Harley.   
  
"You okay?" Tomo asked.  
  
Harley nodded, "I'm fine. Zabyun?" She looked down at the spear head- which was Zabyun's head, really.   
  
"I got what I need. I know how to dispell her curse in our time now," The Mashin replied.  
  
"Then we'll reset and go again. Hopefully for the last time," Atsuya said.  
  
"Once we know when the window closes," Tomo said. "That way we'll know for sure how long Reversia's portals last for."  
  
"Oh, well, that may be awkward," Atsuya said as Oladdin and Mabayuine approached them.  
  


* * *

  
 **THE PRESENT ONCE AGAIN...**  
  
Harry rolled over Garuza's shoulder, and swung out with Shiny Breaker.  
  
Garuza grabbed him by the arm and flipped him over, however.   
  
"GRRAH!" Garuza swung in, trying to finish the job, but Harry got back to his feet.  
  
Kick- swing- trading blows- Harry jumped over one of Garuza's attacks.  
  
They locked weapons- then swung around trying to break the lock- Then Harry leaped aside.  
  
 _ **_"ONE DRILL BLAST!"_**_ He activated Shiny Breaker. "TAKE THIS!"  
  
 ** __"GOING IN!"__** Harry punched Breaker's tip into the ground, launching a wave of debris at Garuza.  
  
Garuza leaped through the explosion that followed with a laugh- completely unphased.  
  
"You Fool!" He shouted.  
  
"What!?" Harry held the Breaker up to block the oncoming flury of sword strikes.  
  
But then he got slashed aside with a Jamental strike.  
  
Meanwhile, Equius was running along the dockfront and leaping over Bechats, slashing away whenever he could get away with it.  
  
He began ascending a set of stairs, slashing away at the Bechats.  
  
Similarly, Nepeta was doing her best to disarm and destroy Bechats nearby.  
  
She tripped them, tackled them, bodily tossed them, hit them with her gun, shot them--  
  


_**SPWOOOOOSH!** _

But it was all for naught- Motorboat Basura got out of the water, roaring, as it marched onto shore.  
  
"Too bad!" Garuza taunted as he knocked Harry down. "It appears that Basura has recharged."  
  
Harry glared at Garuza as he didn't dare close in to finish the job. "Tch...!"  
  
"Keep struggling in vain," Garuza said, laughing as he turned to leave.  
  
"Wait!" Harry went to chase after him, only for Bechats to get in the way. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!"  
  
"Bechaa!" they refused.  
  
The Jamenju stomped through the streets, beginning a renewed rampage in Sardines.  
  
Nepeta cleared her area of Bechats, and went for her morpher- "Express! We need to go!"  
  
Tap, swipe- Two stones Decaptchalogued, growing to size, and combining.  
  
"MASHIIIIIN!" Esprez called out as she combined with Drybe. "MASHIN EXPRESS!"  
  
"I won't let it do what it pleases again!" Nepeta declared as she sat down at the wheel.  
  
The Basura was firing eye lazers at the city as Express blew in, [firing laser beams in return](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba4.png).  
  
"Got your attention now!" Nepeta started.  
  
Express fired more laser beams at the Jamenju as it dove into the street and phased into it like it was water.  
  
"You won't get away!!" Nepeta shouted. 

[Express chased the Jamenju down the streets](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba5.png), firing laser beams as they went.

"I'm charging the hyperdrive!" Esprez reported. "If it tries leaping through buildings, so can we!"  
  
"Good thinking!" Nepeta nodded.  
  
Sure enough, the Jamenju tried just that- leaping up to a skyscraper's silvery surface and splashing through the building without harming it.  
  
Mashin Express....

Ground to a halt, however.

A hyperspace window had failed to form.  
  
"What the-!?" Nepeta shouted as crimson alert signs flashed up around the internal cockpit.  
  
"Drybe!!? What's wrong?!" Esprez shouted. "Why'd you cut power!?"  
  
An answer couldn't be given- the Jamenju burst out of the ground behind them, and smacked them away.  
  
Mashin Express tumbled through the streets- more alarm warnings blaring within.  
  
"DRYBE!" Esprez shouted. "WAKE UP!"  
  
"What's going on!?" Nepeta asked.  
  


* * *

  
Down below, Harry finished dispatching his annoying Bechat hangerons, and tapped his Morpher. "Come on, Drijan!" he spun the wheel.  
  
 _ **_"MASHIN DRIJAN!"_**_  
  
The Zord roared out of its bay, teleporting into the city a moment later.  
  
The Jamenju saw Drijan, and turned to run underground, diving deep.  
  
"I'll get it!" Harry shouted, leaping onboard, and drilling underground through a ruined area of the city, [chasing after the partially out of phase Jamenju.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba7.png) "I won't let you get away!!"

* * *

 **THE PAST ONCE AGAIN.**  
  
Energy blasts smashed into the sea as Necrolai dodged to escape.  
  
Jouki roared overhead- eyes gleaming with light as King Oladdin and Queen Mabayuine disembarked.  
  
Rain fell over them, and Necrolai snarled- "Who dares attack me!? I'm busy trying to regain my body!"  
  
"We are the King and Queen of Crystalia, and you, Witch Numaajo, are poisoning our world!" Oladdin declared.   
  
"Crystalia?" Necrolai turned her head. "Fine then!" She gathered a curse spell in hand and flung it at them.  
  
Jouki interceeded- rocketing infront and blocking the curse, and circling around, flinging it backwards into cliffs behind them.  
  
An explosion blew off on impact.  
  
"I'll dispell any curses you throw at us!" Jouki declared- eyes gleaming, ready for another laser blast.  
  
"You're rather annoying when you talk," Necrolai growled at the train. She snapped her fingers, and summoned a horde of mud covered monsters- mockup Minions with masks painted with the Bechat symbols- her army of Bloodfiend thralls.  
  
They snapped and snarlled...  
  
And then they ran at the King and Queen of Crystalia. They fought- and as they fought, Jouki fired in laser beams, trying to aid the fight.  
  
And though Necrolai didn't show it, she was panicking. Her attempts to summon her Bloodstone Mashin weren't working.  
  
Where was it!? Where was her crimson, bloodstone Mashin!?

Then, she suddenly had more issues pressing upon her-[ Kiramei Red was leaping out of nowhere, and they began to fight](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba2.png)\- dodging this way and that- trading energy enhanced sword strikes with a furious velocity.  
  
Atsuya was keeping her away from the King and Queen- a distraction, it seemed- but also out of sight of Jouki and those two as well.

* * *

Down below in the oceans, that crimson bloodstone of a Mashin was fighting off against a very irrate Mashin Zabyun.  
  
"Get back here you brat!" Zabyun shouted- firing underwater laserbeams at the evasive crimson mashin.  
  
It roared in annoyance, then dove for the surface, trying to complete its summoning...  
  
"Let's go!" Harley pointed ahead.  
  
Zabyun rocketed after it.  
  
As the Bloodstone Mashin rocketed from the water, eye beams firing on Jouki, Zabyun burst forth moments later- mouth opening wide- "GABURINCHO!" The rear end of that crimson mashin was bitten through easily- shattering into chunks- and sending an explosion through the front half.  
  
The eyebeams barely had any effect on Jouki- but it was the right effect- the purple-black Mashin was stunned, and went crashing into the dirt.   
  
"What the-!?" The King turned in surprise, watching as his family's train hit the ground.  
  
Zabyun rocketed forwards- spiraling towards the battle Atsuya was having with Necrolai- and then transformed again- shrinking down and splitting apart into three pieces as Harley and Tomo leaped through the air to grab two of them.  
  
"ZABYUN BLASTERS!" Tomo and Harley shouted- holding the front and rear car sections. Meanwhile, the middle two sections stayed together, and descended into Atsuya's grip- allowing him to block an attack Necrolai was sending his way.  
  
"ZABYUN CANNON!" Atsuya shouted, spinning the weapon around and taking aim at... the ground.  
  
ZYUOOOOOOOOM! A burst of water rocketed out- blasting Atsuya backwards, and upwards, into the air, where he fell into formation with his Descending teammates, and they took aim at the horde of Bloodfiends that the King and Queen were fighting.  
  
"FINAL WAVE!" They shouted- firing water tornados in all directions- washing the Bloodfiends away in every which direction- namely, out to sea.  
  
"MY ARMY!" Necrolai shouted- dazed from a near point blank water dousing.  
  
Then, King Oladdin and Queen Mabayuine were on her, neither not quite knowing what was going on but rolling with it regardless.  
  
Job done, Zabyun regrew to full size and combined back together- catching the Kiramagers inside as he rocketed off towards the Reversia Portal- which was already starting to close.  
  
Jouki woke up a few moments later, just in time to watch events unfold.  
  
The King delivered a final blow to the Vampire's heart, spearing her through.  
  
He pulled back his sword and jumped back to a safe distance.  
  
Necrolai was sparking from that point of impact- and laughing. "I sacrifice my life to your family to die as many painful deaths as I've suffered today, KING OF CRYSTALIA!!"  
  
She fell- and exploded.  
  
The King and Queen looked at eachother, looked themselves over, then shrugged.  
  
"I don't know what that was," The Queen said, "but those heroes saved our lives just now, didn't they?"  
  
"I think they did," Oladdin nodded, gazing after them. "But... I wonder who they were to come and go like that?"  
  


* * *

 **THE PRESENT. FINALLY.**  
  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 3RD, 2012.**  
  
The Jamenju arrived in an undergound cave, roaring as Drijan burst through a wall behind it and transforming almost immediately.  
  
 _"WONDER CHANGE!"_  
  
 ** __"OH! EXCELLENT!!"__**  
  
 ** __"MASHIN HENKEI!"__**  
  
 _"READY!" **_"GIGANT DRILLER!"_**_  
  
[Harry punched forwards with the drill- sparking against the Jamenju's claws](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba8.png).

The Jamenju tried to punch back, but Dirjan's claw arm managed to punch first through sheer factor of the cavern being a very tight space for the both of them- smacking the claws away.  
  
The Drill swung in again- and the Jamenju staggered backwards, wounded. It had enough of this.  
  
It roared- and then launched forwards at rocket speeds- bursting past Gigant Driller to deliver a speedy strike.  
  
"GAH! It's too fast!" Harry shouted as it came back for seconds, and thirds. "This isn't a contest of strength!"  
  
The Jamenju rocketed for the surface, and Harry was forced to follow after it as Drijan, then transformed again back into Gigant Driller.  
  
The Jamenju landed on its feet, and swung at Driller- striking at him before he could react.  
  
As Harry put it best in that moment- "I don't even have time to turn around!" Blow after blow after blow-- the Motorboat Basura was just too speedy for him to react to.  
  
Harry got shoved up against a building- dazed- and the Jamenju unleashed its eye blasts.  
  
Gigant Driller was burst through the building- hit the ground, and Harry was sent tumbling out of the control slot as his stone form- sliding, flipping, and landing harshly across the city before shrinking back down into his ranger form.  
  
The Jamenju loomed overhead, aiming to strike him down.  
  
"Harry!" Equius called out- struggling with Bechats.  
  


The Jamenju unleashed eyebeams upon Harry as he dove for cover out of the line of fire.  
  
The Jamenju wouldn't have it, briefly diving into the ground before emerging behind him to continue firing. It was relentless- and it was clear the Jamenju had its sights set on killing the Silver Kiramager.  
  
Harry dodged the exploding eyebeams... even firing back with Shiny Breaker-- but he couldn't get a hit in edgewise.  
  
Harry got blasted away into debris, and gazed upwards as the Jamenju loomed overhead. "I guess I need to call for reinforcements...!" He reached for his morpher...  
  
The Jamenju unleashed another eye blast that struck home, and Harry went flying- demorphing in the process.  
  
He scrambled to his knees, gazing upwards at his imminet looming doom...

The Jamenju powered up another eyebeam---  
  
"ORAAAAAAAAAA!"  
  
And then the Aqua Kiramei Stone rammed into it, knocking it off balance and onto its side.  
  
"What the--!?" Harry gazed upwards at the stone that had just appeared.

"Don't worry, Harry![" Zabyun declared,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba11.png) "We'll take it from here!"  
  
"Sorry to keep you waiting!" Atsuya bowed his head.  
  
"MAAAASHIIIIIIN!" Zabyun spun in the air, and transformed once more into his train form. "OOORAAAHHH!"  
  
The Jamenju dove into the 'waters' of the streets once more, Mashin Zabyun straight on his tail.

* * *

Garuza shook his head. "That voice... It can't be anything more than a coincidence." He was lying to himself, though, and he knew it.  
  
"What is it?" Lothor asked.  
  
"Hahahah!" Kurantual laughed. "Isn't that the same voice Jouki had before whenever the Rangers stole him?!"  
  
And then he froze as Garuza turned to stare at him.  
  
"Oh," Kurantula swallowed. "That's where the Aqua Stone Came From, isn't it?"

* * *

Zabyun did much the same as the Jamenju-[ diving into the city streets like they were water, and surfing along down them with his shark fin pointing up through the ground like a massive land shark.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba14.png)  
  
"Thank goodness..." Harry said, before falling towards the ground--   
  
"Got you!" Equius swooped in and caught him just in time.  
  
The Jamenju couldn't escape- it knew it was the outclassed predator in these waters of Sardine.  
  
Zabyun was hot on his tail and no amount of speed could be added on to change that fact.  
  
The Jamenju leaped- and Zabyun leaped as well.  
  
Buildings? No problem- as fluid as the waters of the sea itself.  
  
The Jamenju just couldn't shake Zabyun.  
  
"What an amazing Mashin," Equius stared on. "He's fast and swift like a ninja!"  
  
"Let's finish it here, Zabyun!" Atsuya declared.   
  
"Yeah! Let's use that what-d-ya-call-it again?" Zabyun asked.  
  
"The Sharks Searching Ability?" Atsuya answered, "Lorenzini Search!"  
  
"Got it!" Zabyun sent off waves of electromagnetic searching powers at the Jamenju's back.  
  
[They locked onto the two thruster engines built ninto its mask's back](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba15.png).  
  
"Those engines! Let's blast 'em!" Atsuya pointed.  
  
"SHAAAAAAAAAARK!" Zabyun shouted- blasting at the engines as they leaped through mid air with his eye beams.

[The Engines exploded, and the Jamenju went tumbling through the air-](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba16.png) landing with a thud into the streets below.  
  
Car alarms were set off by the impact.  
  
Atsuya went to his morpher- "Nepeta! Bring Express!"  
  
Express took off and swerved towards them.   
  
"Welcome back!" Nepeta greeted. "But- Something's wrong with Drybe...!"  
  
"Can you hold out for a Gattai?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"We can try!" Esprez answered.  
  
"Then let's do this!"[ Atsuya held up his sketch book, showing a new version of the Express Gattai](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba17.png).

"Yet another new form?" Zabyun laughed. "I'M ON FIRE TODAY!"   
  
He, and Mashin Express split apart and began combining together.  
  
 **_"MASHIN GATTAI!"_**

~ ** _~ZABY~~UUUUUUN!~~_**

The new mecha posed brillaintly, sparkling waves of water roaring off of them as they completed the combination.  
  
"COMPLETE!" Everyone shouted. "ZABYUN EXPRESS!"

[The newly Dubbed Zabyun Express landed across from the Motorboat Basura,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba19.png) the skys greying and opening up with rain from the heavens as the new Megazord stood brillaintly before everyone.

"Alright, let's finish it off right away!" Atsuya declared.  
  
"Blink and you'll miss me!" Zabyun declared, rushing in.  
  
A punch colided- sparks and water flew from the impact. A kick flew in next, another punch, and another!   
  
Punch and punch and punch and punch!! Faster than the Jamenju could react!!  
  
KICK and PUNCH! AND KICK!!! AGAIN! AGAIN! The same kick in a row so fast it seemed like time was repeating.  
  
Zabyun Express struck a pose, and laughed the entire time- "I've Missed This!!"  
  
"JAWS ATTACK!" Atsuya called out.

**_"SHAAAAARK!"_ **

Zabyun Express rocketed forwards, Zabyun's head glowing brightly as an etherial appearance of a Shark loomed behind them.  
  
"CHOOOOOOOOOMP!" Zabyun shouted- and they punched past the Jamenju- biting down. Sparks flew wildly.  
  
The Jamenju hit the ground- dazed.  
  
Nepeta took it from there- "Left Hand Screw!"  
  
Zabyun Express' left hand, a massive corckscrew Propeller engine, roared to life, unleashing a hurricane screw of pure, hyper powered water onto the Jamenju as it tried to get back onto its feet.  
  
"Zabyun Tornado Cutter!" Atsuya declared.  
  
The Gattai turned into a pure, linked train mode with Express in the back, roaring towards the Jamenju and encircling it rapidly with strikes and bites and cuts and blasts-  
  
Then they broke off and recombined.  
  
"Time to finish it!" Atsuya declared, posing in the cockpit. "ZABYUN MEGALOBLASTER!"  
  
The Mecha raised its arms as Kiramental gathered from everywhere into the two arm blasters.

[Zabyun chanted- _"ZaZaZaZAZAAAAA **BYUUUUUUUUUUUUN!"**_](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba21.png)  
  
Twin corkcscrews of water energy spiraled together into a projection of a shark's maw, smashing into the Jamenju and blowing it up- finally.

Zabyun Express posed dramatically infront of the explosion, with Esprez and Zabyun calling out together: **_"CHECKMAGE!"_**  
  
"AlRIGHT!" Atsuya cheered as[ the sun came out to shine on them](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage21-zaba23.png).

* * *

 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 4TH, 2012.**  
  
Harry awoke in the Beltus' infirmary, finding his Sister, Sally, sitting there reading a novel with some strange title of "Before the Dawn" or something like that. Harry groaned as he tried to sit up.  
  
Sally looked up from her book as he made that noise, and she gave a faint smirk. "Welcome back." She offered no help to get him sitting up, and instead just looked back to her book for a few moments.  
  
"Ah... thanks..." Harry sat up, grimacing.  
  
"You're the idiot who went and challenged a Jamenju from the ground," Sally said, placing a bookmark and captchaloging her book entirely.   
  
"I didn't really have much of a choice," Harry answered. Then, he remembered- "The Princess..!"  
  
"T'is fine," Sally answered with a reassuring tone, standing up and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Zabyun removed her curse already."  
  
"Oh thank goodness..." Harry leaned back into bed as Sally gently pushed him back. "The others succeeded then?"  
  
"They did," Sally nodded. "I think that much would be obvious from the fact that we're all still standing here."  
  
"I can rest then?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh, baring emergencies? You're benched 'til new year," Sally grinned. "Moms both agreed that you're way grounded for not calling for Duston or Mazellan right from the start of the battle."  
  
"Ah. That figures," Harry muttered as he closed his eyes. Then, they snapped open again. "They're not cutting back on Christmas are they?"  
  
"Nope," Sally answered. "We've got the Fuuuull extended family gathering planned now for sure."  
  
"Damn it," Harry groaned, not out of pain, but expected embarassment. "Everyones going to give me so much flack for this, aren't they?"  
  
"Tavvy told me Uncle Jake's already planning on giving you some 'tips' for how to properly wrestle with a truly oversized opponent," Sally answered with a giggle.  
  
"Fun," Harry chuckled dryly.  
  
"Just wait 'til you get out of this bed," Sally said, patting him on the shoulder she had pushed him down with.   
  
"I'm waiting already," Harry answered with a sigh.  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile, in the Zord Bay, diagnostic scanners ran over Drybe's gemstone form.  
  
Gina Kae frowned as she looked at the results. "There's absolutely nothing wrong with him, physically."  
  
"Then why'd the Hyperdrive shut down?" Nepeta asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, yet," Gina said. "Preliminary scans aren't showing a fault or any issues. I'll have to run more tests to get any proper results."  
  
"Hopefully it was just a fluke," Nepeta said, frowning. "But... This could be something bad, couldn't it?"  
  
"If it's anything like a curse, we'll see about getting Zabyun to clear it," Gina said. "If it's Jamental Corruption... Well, we should be seeing it already, I'd think. So it's probably not that."  
  
"So what is it then?" Nepeta asked.  
  
"Whatever it is, we'll figure it out and fix it," Gina gave the girl a reassuring smile. "I'll get Mabushiina in here to coordinate examinations once she's fully recovered from the curse's aftershocks."  
  
Nepeta nodded, and smiled. She placed a hand on the window to the Zord bay, and called out, "Feel well soon, Drybe."

* * *

"Atsuya!" Zabyun asked, "Am I a Shark or a Train?"  
  
"You're a shark-snake train!" Atsuya answered.  
  
"Don't be shnarky!!" Zabyun remarked.

[ **> [S] CREDITS** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1BIkkvmfrk)

* * *

_**NEXT KIRAMAGER!**_  
  
"Queen Mabayuine is alive!?" Harley shouted.  
  
"Uhhh, maybe I should've kept my mouth closed," Daniel said.  
  
"It's a Bank Robbery!!" The Jamenshi of the day declared.  
  
"But it's Christmas!!!" Nepeta shouted.  
  
"It's a Christmas Bank Robbery!!" The Jamenshi corrected.  
  
 **NEXT EPISODE: 22: "So you're crossing to the other side of the street?" (Play it Safe!)**  
  
"What is this, Die Hard?" Equius asked, tiredly.  
  
"Let's Sparkle Next Time, Too!" Atsuya cheered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end of this two parter! Whoo! 
> 
> There's a lot that goes on here, and honestly, it's a SUPER DUPER LOT to go over. And I don't got the time to write up a full dissection right now as I'm posting this, so I'll just let the episode speak for itself here.
> 
> \---
> 
> Next chapter: MINISODE: Soaked.


	10. MINISODE: Soaked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: One Incredibly Obvious Pun.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 3RD, 2012.**  
  
 _"Don't,"_ Dirk said, soaking wet, looking miserable, and dripping water everywhere.  
  
"Well," The Traveler started, equally soaked, but grinning.  
  
 _"Don't say it,"_ Dirk begged.  
  
"You could say we were in the _Splash Zone_ on that one?" The Traveler offered with a bright, jokey tone of voice and a very visibly joke-intending double pistols and a wink.  
  
Dirk just groaned, and said, "I asked you not to say it."  
  
The Traveler just laughed like mad.  
  
It would be another fifteen minutes before the streets were no longer flooded enough for people to start getting around again on foot, let alone via car or bus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: SGA:06X18: “Night Time in the City” (Part 1)  
> \---  
> So. Real Ass Meta Talk here that I didn't get to at the end of the last chapter. There's a lot of stuff that went down these last bits, and there's some obvious reasons for it.
> 
> First and Foremost. Mashin Zabyun's debut! When I first started writing Jouki as a character I didn't know this was where he was going to go. Kiramager definitely didn't go this route, nor did they go the at-one-point-assumed "Purified" route either. I went with something rather unique here, I think- in that it builds upon the lore Kiramager gave us regarding Soul Transmigration for Crystalians. 
> 
> Kiramager included a canon time travel episode as part of this debut, though in a really weird round about way with trying to steal a tea cup and-- well, backstory reasons were incompatible at this stage so I had to wholesale make up a new plot. Hence Necrolai getting dusted back with Destoria's debut usage. 
> 
> Garuza has Reversia, and we've already known he's had some weird time-loop thing going on with how he got involved with Gilgamesh in the first place, plus the Kiramagers having their previously established Mission of collecting Esprez's shards from Crystalia... that's a lot of narrative weight that was rather ambiguous before now getting tied together in a solid way. Kiramager giving me the reset button was pretty handy too. The second half of this two parter ended up being a trial run for what I'm planning later down the road.
> 
> BUT, as I've said elsewhere, the time shenanigans are pretty much locked down at this point, baring any new sudden twists in Kiramager itself that I have to adapt.
> 
> The thing you all as readers ought to be concerned about is the parallel realities and timelines.   
> \---  
> Bloodstone Mashin Express- basically a red version of Jouki's front car that transforms like Mashin Express does. 
> 
> The whole miniarc here was Necrolai trolling everyone, basically, and also me slightly hedging my bets on if we'll get a dark version of Express in Kiramager before it's run is out. Japanese fans seem to be expecting a Premium Bandai dark Express to go with Jouki now that we've got Zabyun to go with Express in SUCH a brilliantly dazzling matching color scheme. If we get something like that in the show, well, I've laid the groundwork for it. If not, then the thing dies with this two parter.  
> \---  
> What else is there to touch on? Uhhh...
> 
> Oh! Right! Zabyun's weapon forms! We don't get to see them until the next couple of episodes for the Megazords, but we did get to see his blasters and bazooka and spear formations being used at ranger scale! I'm loving the idea of this and I really wish Kiramager went the extra mile for this, but, ah well.   
> \---
> 
> Huh? What about this chapter and enough of the last one?? UHhh...
> 
> ...It's a joke. About having front row seats to that massive water splashy showdown.
> 
> That's it. That's really all I had for it.


	11. SGA:06X18: “Night Time in the City” (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 1 of 2. Parties, Plans, and Preparations. December passes by after recent events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> A Punch to the Nose.  
> Some Stalkerish behavior.  
> Mourning Death In Unhealthy Ways.  
> Daniel Jackson.  
> Author Avatar Appearance.  
> Cute Character Fluffy Moments <3! (To balance out all this other stuff!)

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 4TH, 2012.**  
  
Rose Egbert hummed a tune to herself as the day passed by quietly.   
  
Given the tight clustering of hers, Harley's, and Tomo's birthdays, it'd become rather convenient over the last few years for everyone to just celebrate them together.   
  
There was, of course, the other matter of time loops throwing a mild wrench into the works and adding some general confusion about whose birthdays were actually when.  
  
They'd be holding a party for everyone on the weekend.  
  
And so Rose hummed to herself quietly, relishing the quiet of a peaceful day.  
  
...Then, little younger brother Harry and not Kiramager Harry started shouting up a storm over something exciting on TV.  
  
Rose sighed, smiled wistfully, and put on her headphones to turn on music.  
  
Yes, truly, such a peaceful day.  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 8TH, 2012.**  
  
"How come everyone's birthdays are all clustered together?" Atsuya asked as he and Nepeta walked down the hallways of Atlantis towards the Sheppard's appartment.  
  
"Dunno, just is," Nepeta shrugged.   
  
"It's the same way with my family, just worse," Harry was trudging along behind them, bearing a large crate full of presents in arm. "Roxy and Rose, Dirk and Dave, Jake and Jade..." He paused. "John and Joan, though that one has an obvious reason considering the whole sudden split timeline thing."  
  
"Sure, but with THAT you've got the excuse of that SBURB game picking the dates and just swapping meteors around," Nepeta pointed out. "Here it doesn't fall anywhere near the same cluster of coincidence." She paused, then asked, "Wait, what days are those for Rose, Dave, and Jade?"  
  
"Fourth, Third, First, respectively," Harry answered- then Nepeta swore, and Harry groaned, in realization.  
  
"What is it?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"Same Birthdays," the two Kiramagers answered in harmony.  
  
"...Ah," Atsuya nodded.  
  
"Also, what day's your birthday, Harry?" Nepeta asked. Harry answered, and Nepeta swore again. "You've got the same b-day as Rose and June's little brother, Harry."  
  
Harry took a moment to parse that sentence, and swore as well. "Don't tell me Tavvy, Sally, and Vrissy...?"  
  
"Ironically, I think Sally's the only one who doesn't have a counterpart in this timeline," Nepeta mused.  
  
"I'm just kinda confused," Atsuya muttered to Fiya, who had popped out of his Morpher during the conversation.  
  
"Ah... it's just some kind of universal constant, I'd guess," Fiya said.   
  
"That doesn't make it any better!" Atsuya whined.

* * *

[ **o < \--- STARGATE: ATLANTIS --- >o** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0K2bRdtGlg)

* * *

"Tomoooo!" Harley giggle-whined as Tomo hugged her and nuzzled up against her neck, giving kisses and smooches. _"That ticklesss!"_  
  
Nepeta and Atsuya were smiling at each other as they talked over in a corner.  
  
Rose and Kanaya were having a dance together out on the dance floor...  
  
These were just three occurrences of many that Harry had noticed during his time at this party.  
  
AH, no, make that four, there was Hiromu and Youko over there trying to hold what seemed to be a serious conversation that kept breaking down into flirty smiles and quick, blushing glances away from each other.  
  
So that was four random samples of relationships from people in Harry's immediate peer group that left him standing over at the table by the punch bowl next to the Silver Go-Buster, Mei.  
  
"Do you ever feel like a third wheel to just about every group of friends you could go talk to?" Harry asked of her.  
  
"I feel like a square wheel among circles most days," Mei answered simply. "Amnesia towards ones own identity does that, after all."  
  
Harry winced. "Fair enough."  
  
"But yes," Mei said, "I do understand what you mean. Third wheel is an appropriate metaphor."  
  
"How, uh, has all of that gone for you, by the way?" Harry asked. "The amnesia thing, I mean."  
  
"I am no closer to remembering who I was as a Kiramei Stone," she answered. "However, I do believe I may have unlocked some memories of a past life from before that state, after reflecting on the body swap incident with your team and their Kiramei Stone partners. It's a strange feeling to consider that I may have once been someone entirely different."  
  
Harry just let her ramble, and listened on.  
  
"I'm currently of the opinion I was likely a normal Crystalian before I became a Kiramei Stone," Mei elaborated. "But I'm also considering the option that I was possibly like you are now- a fleshy being who had been infused with the stone mineral at some point. Or, perhaps I was something else entirely? It's hard to say. My memories are hazy at best of that time, and I struggle to even call them Memories with how possibly scrambled they could be from my own imagination going into overdrive."  
  
She stopped, and looked at him for a long moment.

Harry asked, "Is everything alright?"

Mei then asked in turn, "I am not boring you with my rambling, am I?"  
  
"No," Harry shook his head. "You're fine."  
  
She didn't look convinced, but then again, her facial structure didn't change much to match her emotions anyways, much like Mabushiina, in that regard.  
  
"Honestly," he continued on, "I think your rambles are rather endearing, actually."  
  
Mei made a humming sound, as if she were considering what he was saying seriously in some way he couldn't quite match the process of.  
  
Then, she asked, "Have you ever been kissed before?"  
  
Harry stared at her for a long moment. "Uh... Romantically or Platonicly?"  
  
Mei laughed at that- and much like the Crystalian laughing chime, it was melodic, Harry thought. A rising, melody that felt like a mix between a wind chime and a ringing bell. "That's what Youko asked me when I asked that as well."  
  
"Well, ah, platonicly, there's always family stuff, I guess," Harry paused. "Though, honestly I don't think I've had anyone kiss me like that since I was six." He scratched at the back of his head. "Though, as for romance, I haven't gone and dated anyone." He did snap his fingers as he remembered, "Ah, I have kissed people on stage for school plays, though."  
  
Honestly, if he could forget those many awkward performances of Romeo and Juliet, though...  
  
"You're an actor like Equius?" Mei asked.  
  
"Eh, not professionally," Harry waved it off. "Theater has just been a hobby for me so far. A fun one, though. I mostly just volunteer for costume department stuff these days." Not that he'd had a project to work on for atleast a solid month BEFORE he became a Ranger, though. "Still, I have had some Wonder Fine Roles, that's for sure!" He boasted, putting his hands on his hips.  
  
Mei giggled again. "So that's where you get your theatrics from. I was wondering where the 'wonder' stuff came from.'  
  
"Well," Harry grinned. "Wonder no more!"  
  


* * *

  
Equius sat off in a corner, watching those two converse with a small, wry smile on his lips.  
  
Silently, he marked the count of people doing possibly couple-y things up to five.  
  


* * *

  
"So, I'm going to take Zabyun out later this week," Tomo said as the party wound down and the Kiramagers sat, generally speaking, alone out on the balcony.  
  
Sure, their Kiramei Stone partners were there, but they were all off in a corner talking to themselves.  
  
"How come?" Atsuya asked.   
  
"While everything's looking to be quiet, I'm going to look for the next piece of Zabyun's stone," Tomo said. "It's out there somewhere in Pegasus- the one Shovellow's past self hid. So..." They looked to Harry. "Can I borrow Shiny Breaker?"  
  
"Sure," Harry said- then frowned. "Though, you'll have to get it from Doctor Kae for some maintenance."  
  
Tomo nodded. "I was going to ask her for permission anyways."  
  
"What about the other pieces?" Nepeta asked. "There should be five in total, right?"  
  
"We've got Mahha's," Harley counted them off. "Shovellow's we know where it generally is... Heliko's... Should be on an old D'ni age or with the survivors on Releeshan somewhere?"  
  
"I'll put out some feelers and ask," Equius said. "One of the new actors I'm working with happens to be from Releeshan whose parents survived the Fall and now work in one of the Historical Groups."  
  
"Guild of Archivists," Atsuya nodded. "We've worked a bit with them on some restoration work in Old Athos. I can reach out there, too."  
  
"Beyond that, Fiya's stone fragment was taken by Korrag, right?" Harley asked. "Then Jetta's..."  
  
"We're still working on trying to figure out what Galaxy he was even in," Equius grimaced. "Apparently that planet didn't have a Stargate he was aware of, so either it was buried, or taken."  
  
"Or a Space Gate," Nepeta offered.  
  
"That's something we've considered, too," Equius nodded.  
  
"We'll take it one stone at a time," Tomo said. "We've got a lead on one, so we'll chase it down first."  
  
"In the mean time we'll keep looking for Kanaema Stones, too," Harry said. "Well, I will once I'm ungrounded again."  
  
"You've got our sympathies," Harley smiled at him. "If I could do anything to help, I would."  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 10TH, 2012.**  
  
"Lorenzini Searching!" Mashin Zabyun roared over the treetops of a large forest on a random world in the Pegasus Galaxy.  
  
Inside, Shovellow floated over Tomo's shoulders, gazing out the view screen towards the world below.  
  
"It's all changed in the last couple thousand years," Shovellow muttered. This place wasn't overgrown with trees at all."  
  
"It's a pain, yeah," Tomo said, "but hopefully we'll find this next chunk of stone before anyone else does."  
  
"Mrrmh," Shovellow bobbed in the air.  
  


* * *

  
In another Galaxy, on the planet Earth that Gilgamesh had taken over, Garuza watched the Aqua stone meandering around via a holographic screen.  
  
"Boy, you're sure fixated on that, aren't you?" Kurantula asked.  
  
"I know I should be happy they won't be stealing My Mashin Jouki from me again," Garuza said, "but it ticks me off to no end that they tricked me like that! Of course this would be why they stole it and arranged for that whole fiasco with the 'purification ritual.' Damned children! My meddling niece must have been involved as well, somehow."  
  
Kurantula scoffed, "Well, while you're sitting and moping like a child, I'm taking advantage of the brief reprieve in attacks that Lord Gilgamesh ordered to plan out something truly devious!" He giggled. "I'm going to-!"  
  
Garuza wasn't listening- "I wonder what they're searching for? Another Kanaema Stone perhaps? Unfortunately for them we have means of predicting where they landed already... Still... What are they looking for?"  
  
Kurantula pouted, and said, "Well, you just keep puzzling over that, then, why don't you?"  
  
He turned and left, storming through the facility to a nearby portal generator, and stepping through it to a different point on Earth.  
  
He arrived in a ruined city, and made his way to a bar, where many of Gilgamesh's generals were plotting and planning various misdeeds.  
  
Much to Kurantula's surprise, though, he found Lothor, Moltor, and Flurious sitting together at a table, nursing drinks as they commiserated towards a photo of Necrolai's original form.  
  
"What's up here?" Kurantula asked, joining them at that table.  
  
"We found out where Necrolai landed after that mishap with the Kanaema Stone," Lothor answered.   
  
"I went digging through some historical records Garuza scavenged from Crystalia," Flurious said, dredging out a data pad and handed it to Kurantula. "We found where the Kiramagers went with that time portal of theres. It was to kill Necrolai."   
  
Kurantula whistled as he looked through the records on the pad. "Mashin Zabyun's debut was almost a thousand years or more in the past, eh? Talk about a late arrival spoiler!"  
  
"She was so beautiful!" Moltor lamented. "In her prime... Oh how I wish we could have dated!" He burried his head and sobbed into his arms.   
  
"There there," Lothor patted him on the back.  
  
"She's truly the first of us Generals to die," Flurious said. "It's a real shame, but it truly wasn't anything we could do to stop it."  
  
"EVERYONE!" A random general burst into the room- some woman with a leather kink to her costume design, Kurantula didn't recognize her. "Zeltrax and Mesogog are Dead."  
  
Everyones attention looked up then, mutterings and murmurings...  
  
Lothor stood, "What happened, Elsa? We're supposed to be on break and not attacking the worlds right now."  
  
"The Rangers!" The woman, Elsa, Kurantula guessed, hissed. "The Dino Thunder Team found Zeltrax's slumbering plans and destoyed it while he happened to be there! They used the communication tech there to lure Mesogog out to fight in revenge! I told him not to, but he- They-! They destroyed them both! The Rangers killed them both! I barely escaped with my life!"  
  
Everyone went deathly silent, before muttering around the whole place started up again.  
  
Moltor started crying again, burring his head once more.  
  
Kurantula grimaced. "Three Generals. Oh wow." Enter didn't count, betrayal wise, but if he did that'd be four of Gilgamesh's many generals. How many existed exactly? 20? 30? Somewhere between? More?? Kurantula didn't know the exact numbers, but... It was a shocking, sobering thought.  
  
"I never liked that Mesogog guy. He was too..." Lothor shuddered. "Creepy. But damn, to go out like that?"  
  
"The Rangers are stepping up their game," Flurious rumbled.   
  
"We're entering the fourth quarter of the run soon," Lothor mused. "All the shiny new toys just waiting to come out at the end of the month. And then there's the perpetual team-up status..."  
  
Moltor just sobbed louder- "Neeccrrooollaaaiiii!!"  
  
"What are you going on about?" Flurious asked, ignoring his brother.  
  
"I'm saying," Lothor started, "combined with the fact they've taken out two of my evil Ninja Rangers already too... we've hit the point in every badguy's seasonal arc where the good guys finally start wiping us out, one by one, because we can't just be left alone to perpetually escape destruction." He paused, then stood and raised a glass, _**tink**_ -ing a stirring spoon against it to get everyones attention again.  
  
Once all eyes were on him, Lothor spoke again.  
  
"Everyone! This is it. We've reached the point of no return! Drink like you could die tomorrow..." He smiled, grimly. "Because chances are you very well might."  
  


* * *

  
 _ **_"SHINY BREAKER!"_**_ Tomo tapped the button twice.  
  
 _ **_"ONE DRILL BLAST! GOING IN!"_**_ Tomo pointed the drill head down... and pulled the trigger.  
  
 _ **_"ONE JOB DONE!"_** _it shouted as the ground exploded downwards and outwards.  
  
When the smoke cleared, Tomo, Shovellow, and Zabyun peered over the edge into the hole that had just been made.  
  
Blue light shined upwards at them.  
  
Tomo demorphed, and smiled, "Jackpot."  
  


* * *

  
A chunk of Blue Diamond was placed on the table in the Ranger Classroom in Atlantis- a dirt covered Tomo stood on the other side of the desk from Gina Kae, who stared upwards in mild amusement.  
  
"Well," Gina said, "there's that extra credit earning drive paying off again."  
  
"At least I asked for permission first this time," Tomo said, handing over Shiny Breaker.   
  
"That you did," Gina took the device and stored it in her sylladex. She then looked at the large chunk of stone resting on her desk. "So that's two chunks of Zabyun's new body collected now."  
  
"It's kinda weird," Zabyun said, hovering over Tomo's right shoulder.   
  
"I can only imagine. At any rate," Gina shook her head. "That leaves atleast two more fragments, maybe three, to recover. You did good."  
  
"Thanks," Tomo nodded.   
  
"Do we know what's up with Drybe yet?" Shovellow asked.  
  
Gina shook her head 'no.' "Mabushiina's looking into it still. She thinks the problem may lie in the original nature of how their essence wasn't split in two for so long, but... It's hard to say for certain yet."  
  
Tomo nodded in understanding. "Of course. Let us know if you hear anything?"  
  
"Naturally," Gina nodded.   
  
As Tomo and the two Kiramei stones turned to leave, Gina called out, "Oh, and Tomo?"  
  
"Yes?" Tomo turned around.  
  
"I finally had a chance to review the energy surge phenomenon from the latest attempt compared to the initial test run," Gina explained. "Unfortunately, there was still a surge on the ending of the loop- smaller, but I'm not certain if that was due to the number of loops presented, or due to the previous fix I'd applied." She paused. "I need to run more tests on it to be certain, but until I do, don't use it unless it's an absolute emergency, alright?" She leveled a firm gaze against the yellow Kiramager. "We do NOT want to blow a hole in the universe by accident by meddling with time, after all."  
  
Tomo nodded. "Understood, Doctor Kae."  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 13TH, 2012.**  
  
Nepeta found Atsuya and Fiya working over some historical book in one of the old Athos libraries when she concluded her search.  
  
"Atsuya!" She said, heading over.   
  
After a few greetings, and Heliko making an excuse to drag Fiya away so they could talk...  
  
"You and your parents are officially invited to the annual Christmas get together my extended family and everyone else has every year," Nepeta suddenly said while presenting Atsuya with a thin, postcard sized envelope.   
  
"Oh, thank you..." Atsuya took the envelope, opened it, and gazed at what it said. "Not on Christmas this year?"  
  
Nepeta shook her head. "Turns out everyones' got way too crowded of a schedule this year, and Aunt Cassandra also said it was probably a bad idea this year anyways even if we didn't."  
  
"Don't question the Seers," Atsuya agreed, then, teasingly, he changed the subject and asked, "So am I getting invited because I'm dating you, or because I'm the Kiramager's team leader?"  
  
"Momma'Kuri asked me that too when I asked if I could invite you," Nepeta answered with a faint blush. "And the answer is because you're an important person to me and I'd be inviting you even if we weren't dating or teammates!"  
  
"Awh," Atsuya smiled, and then stood up from the chair he'd been sitting in to kiss her. "Thanks."  
  
Nepeta giggled, "You're welcome," and then kissed him back.   
  


* * *

  
Our perspective shifts to Heliko and Fiya while those two enjoyed each others company for a few minutes.  
  
"So, speaking of teammates," Fiya began...  
  
"You're invited too," Heliko said. "All the Mashin are, even!"  
  
"Oh, good, I was wondering," Fiya said, "but actually I was wondering about Harry. Is he--?"  
  
"Conflicting family commitments," Heliko answered. "Apparently his family scheduled stuff for the same day!"  
  
"What are the coincidences of that, eh?" Fiya asked.   
  
"Pretty high," Heliko answered with a dry chuckle.  
  
"So, where's little Carry right now?" Fiya asked, changing subjects. "I didn't see her come in."  
  
"Helping Nepeta's Moms with holiday prep stuff," Heliko answered. "She said the cutest thing when Nepeta asked her if she wanted to come or not." She fake-coughed, and pitched her voice to try and match, " _'I don't wanna watch mamma and pappa get all mushy when I can be squishing cookie dough!'_ " Then, she laughed, setting Fiya off into chuckles as well.  
  
"Oh wow. She's certainly getting sharp with her words these days, isn't she?" Fiya asked.  
  
"You've got NO idea, Fiya," Heliko giggled.   
  


* * *

  
**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 14TH, 2012.**  
  
"...And now...!" Equius was posing before the camera of a small TV studio production. "Behold the might of my divine right hand!" He was dressed as a Fisherman with a Priestly theme.   
  
And thus, he swung his fishing rod out with perfect aim- snagging the offscreen fish target on the first try, and reeling it back in with a snapback motion.  
  
It was fairly unimpressive given that the CGI and VFX had yet to be composed for the scene... But even so, everyone _oohed and aahed_ appropriately as if it was ten times as impressive- not that they didn't have reason TO be impressed. The stunt doubles had tried this same stunt a dozen times in rehearsal, and here came along Equius Okimaw, snagging it on the first try on the last scene of the day.  
  
"BEHOLD!" Equius held up the stuffed toy fish prop. "THE GOLDEN FISH NARGLE WRACKSPRIT OF WHACHUZAMARU!"  
  
The fish itself was a cheesy, felt looking Yellow, but it was to be assuredly improved by VFX and CGI to have an impressive golden glow to it... Even if the NAME was utter nonsense and everyone knew it.  
  


* * *

  
"AND CUT!" Alarms buzzed- RING RING- and everyone relaxed.  
  
Equius sat down in his chair, and began reviewing the script, frowning as he looked at the lines ahead for the next scene.  
  
"Yo, Equius!" Azdaja said, approaching then. "My booooy! Holy shit since when were you such a master angler like that!? Man, if I'd know you were that good at fishing I'd've tried taking you on the O'neill Circuits!"  
  
Equius glanced at his father and gave a smile. "It's all in the wrist. And also, honestly, fishing a stationary fish off of a simple table is ten times easier than grabbing a magic stone out of a moving Jamenshi's waist worn bait box. I'd imagine actually fishing a real moving fish out of the water would be ten times more complicated."  
  
Azdaja chuckled in understanding. "Yeah, that's probably true...”  
  
Equius changed the subject, “So, what brings you by the set, Dad?”  
  
“Ah, nothing much,” Azdaja smiled, sadly, as he looked out onto the set. “Just wanted to check up on you. Make sure that you were enjoying yourself here.”  
  
“I’m enjoying myself more than I did with the movie project,” Equius said, smiling. “I think I’m enjoying the non-serious and partially comedy stuff more than the serious roles. It reminds me more of the stage shows, here.”  
  
“Yeah.” Azdaja sighed. “I sure do miss those stage shows. It was a mistake for me to sign you on with that damned tallent agent like that.”  
  
“Enter fooled a lot of people, Dad,” Equius said, standing and placing a hand on Azdaja’s shoulder. “He even got past me, when I should’ve seen it. It’s not your fault.” Then, he smiled. “I’m just glad you agreed to let me choose this role of my own accord and audition for it properly. I’m doing fine here. It’s been a real blast.”  
  
“Thanks,” Azdaja smiled. “When’d you get to be so wise, kid?”  
  
“Probably the tenth time Mom and I had to pull you out of a sticky situation?” Equius offered.  
  
“Ah, yeah, probably that,” Azdaja chuckled at his own expense.  
  


* * *

  
When the day was done, Equius was walking out of the studio, Jetta hovering over his shoulder.  
  
“Well, today was fun,” Jetta said.  
  
“It was,” Equius nodded- then, his Morpher chimed with a call. He struck it. “Yes?”  
  


* * *

  
“Hey, Equius?” Harley asked, gazing at a wall of bread loaves. “I’m helping shop for the Christmas get-together, and I’m at the Diaspora Bread Market. You got any preferences for sandwich breads?”  
  


* * *

  
Equius considered itt for a moment, then answered, “Their classic Herb and Cheese, if you can find it.”  
  


* * *

  
“Got it,” Harley said, then grabbed a few bags of pre-sliced bread, and tossed them into a cart. “Thanks.”  
  


* * *

“Is there anything else?” Equius asked.  
  
 _“No,”_ Harley answered- and Equius could hear the frown in her voice.  
  
“You sure?” He asked.  
  


* * *

  
“Not about the party, but I’m a little worried about...” Harley trailed off, gazing at the rows of many bread types. “Well. I’m worried about what kind of retaliation Takuya’s team is going to face after they killed off two villains.”  
  


* * *

  
Equius nodded, remembering the Dino Thunder Team’s recent victory. Then, remembering Harley couldn’t see him, said, “It’s probably something we’ll all start seeing sooner or later as we draw out the Villains from hiding. Enter, Necrolai... Those two whose names I never even learned.”  
  
 _“Zeltrax and Mesogog,”_ Harley supplied.  
  
“Right that,” Equius nodded again. “I think we’re entering a new phase of everything. I wouldn’t be surprised if we all start seeing a ramp up in difficulty after the new year.”  
  


* * *

  
Harley sighed. “I know. Not much we can do about it, though. Thanks for hearing me out, at any rate.”  
  
 _“Any time,”_ Equius said. _“See you at the party?”_  
  
“Yeah,” Harley nodded. “See you there.” She struck at her morpher to end the call.  
  


* * *

  
Equius continued along his route back towards the nearest Linking Book Nexus Hub- pausing only once more along the route as he saw a familiar face trying to get away from some oddly dressed teen in green.  
  
The familiar face was Serara Meiiko, Mystic Force Blue, and she looked rather annoyed at the teenager in question.   
  
He... quite honestly looked like someone had ripped the costume of "Cyber Cam" out of one of those Power Ranger seasons that had aired before Earth had been utterly 'vanished' via ZPM overload. As in, someone trying way too hard to look 'cool' and 'punk' and going overboard into 'skater chiche' - and not even the GOOD end of it that actually looked cool and awesome, the far end-the unfashionable end. Like how someone would dress an actor in a stage show for a parody or stereotype.  
  
There was something else oddly familiar about the teen too. Something in his facial structure? Did he know this person?  
  
Serara saw Equius, and her crimson eyes widened. "EQUI-MAW!"  
  
She-- sounded WAY too happy to see him all of a sudden. And with the way Serara suddenly ran up to him, hugged him tight around his left arm and pressed her mouth up next to his ear like she was kissing him--  
  
"Pretend to be my Matesprit for a bit, okay?" Her voice was panicked, and low and quiet and not at all containing the energy it'd had a moment before.  
  
Equius stiffened, realizing something was up. "Hey, Sera-chan," he said, slipping into a practiced role with ease. "What's the matter?"  
  
"This creep keeps asking me out even though I've told him No a Hundred times already!" Serara pouted, pressing her chest against his arm. Were Equius a lesser man who wasn't used to controlling his strength, he would have missed that the tightness she was applying to his arm was very much NOT out of any kind of romantic interest. Not with the way her fingers were digging into his arm elsewhere.   
  
Panic- fear- she was afraid of this guy.  
  
Equius put on his best 'is that so?' sneer at the guy who'd made him weary before.  
  
Something was OFF about this whole thing.  
  
The Guy in green held his hands up and said, "My bad, I thought she was playing hard to get with that 'I have a boyfriend' thing."  
  
And then the guy turned and left- but not before Equius saw a brief snarl form on the guy's lips.  
  
...Something was seriously off.  
  
Once the guy was out of sight, Serara relaxed her grip on his arm with her hands, but not with her arms.   
  
"Walk me home?" Serara asked, a flirty tone to her voice- but strained. She was still scared.  
  
"Of course," Equius said, then asked as they walked, "What happened?"  
  
"He was following me for three blocks before I realized he was actually following me. I thought he was just someone going the same way I was, but..." Serara didn't let go of his arm. "Then he did the whole, 'Hey you're a ranger, right?' thing and I thought he was just a fan. Then he turned the creep up and asked me out, I turned him down, and left, and he just kept following and pestering and-" She shuddered. "I don't know what I'd have done if I hadn't run into you. Morph, maybe, but..."  
  
"No Relto book?" Equius asked.  
  
"I left it at home like an idiot," she answered, squeezing against his arm again- "Shit. Just saw his reflection in a window."  
  
Equius glanced at a nearby car window, and indeed saw the guy in green following them like a creep. "Persistent, isn't he?"  
  
"I don't know what his problem is," Serara hissed. "Most fans take it well when I turn them down or say I have a boyfriend or girlfriend already. This..."  
  
"Let's not use the usual book," Equius said as they approached the Book Room Nexus. "Let's head somewhere else."  
  
"Where?" Serara asked. "Atlantis?"  
  
"Should scare him off," Equius nodded.   
  
They entered the round hub room of Linking Books, and approached the one under the stained glass window depicting the City of Atlantis.   
  
A double link and informing the security guard on duty later... and the guy didn't follow them through.  
  
"He's got a sense of where he's not allowed, at least," Equius said as Serara finally relaxed and let go of his arm entirely.   
  
"There's that," Serara sighed, then looked to Equius and smiled. "Thanks for taking me this far. I think I'll stay the night here in the class room or something."  
  
"Won't your parents...?" Equius started, but she shook her head.  
  
"They're off world until new-years," Serara answered. "Work issues. I'm stuck at home alone for now."  
  
Equius sighed. "What a time to attract a creepy person's attention."  
  
"Yeah," She sighed as well. "Hopefully that's the last we see of him, though."  
  
"Hopefully," Equius frowned, still feeling like he knew that guy from somewhere. It had to be just the way he was dressed. It was clearly a costume ripped out of some TV show or movie. Right?  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 15TH, 2012.**  
  
The New Athos Festival was in full swing that Saturday, and Nepeta and Atsuya were happily dancing away, center stage among all the dancing happening that day, distracting many people with their happiness.  
  
Off to the side, Teyla Emmagan and John Sheppard watched those two rangers being so carefree.  
  
“It’s strange, after the last few months, to have moments of normalcy like this again,” Teyla said simply.  
  
“We sure got used to being on high alert again pretty quickly,” John nodded.  
  
“That we did,” Teyla mused. “I suppose the last few years of unnatural peace may have been an aberration, in that regard.”  
  
“You know what they say about nature hating a vacuum,” John frowned. “Still. Can’t help but appreciate these breathers when they happen.”  
  
“Yes, they’re welcome respites,” Teyla nodded. “To face such high tension at all times can be unbearable.”  
  
Atsuya and Nepeta traded the stage’s spotlight to Tomo and Harley, who took up dancing next as their teammates went to get some water from a dispenser stall.  
  
“It’s good to see them being able to be kids again,” John said.  
  
“That it is,” Teyla said, smiling. “Though, children they’ll be for not too much longer. Torren is already growing far too fast for my own liking some days.”  
  
“They do grow up fast,” John agreed. “Seems like it’s too fast, some days.”  
  
“Speaking of too fast,” Teyla changed the subject, “before I forget to remind you, I’ll probably have to skip part of this years holiday meet up, maybe the whole day. I have a Doctor’s appointment that day. I’d scheduled it before the change of date was announced and I can’t change it now.”  
  
“Everything alright?” John asked.  
  
“Hopefully so,” Teyla answered. “But I’ve been feeling ill the last few mornings, and I’d like a second opinion before I jump to conclusions.”  
  
“Well, hopefully it’s all good,” John smiled at his long time friend. “If not, well, hopefully it’s nothing serious.”  
  
“Indeed,” Teyla nodded.  
  
A sudden shout of “YAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHA!” Got their attention, and the two teammates looked over towards the dance floor to see Carry in her bipedal form carrying a small stack of several Athosian children on her back- all of them laughing and cheering like mad.  
  
Teyla swore- “Where do they get these insane ideas!?”  
  
John just laughed as Nepeta and Atsuya quickly ran in to support the unsteady, wobbling tower stack of kids just incase they fell over.  
  


* * *

  
**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 17TH, 2012.**

Keiko Ayano breathed out slowly as she stared at the email infront of her on her KI.  
  
The Unwritten had returned contact, finally.  
  
The reason for the long gap in communication? They’d hit a Time Snarl of some kind. Literally from their perspective, it hadn’t been but hours since the last mail had been sent from their end. Imagine their surprise to receive several weeks worth of emails in a few seconds.   
  
It was a surprising turn around of a potentially bad situation, but it seemed they’d lost an Aschen pilotfish that’d been tailing them to-  
  
Wait.  
  
Aschen Pilotfish??  
  
Keiko clicked through the newly attached documents...  
  
Oh, there was a file. A spycraft ship, very small, about the size of a Puddle Jumper.   
  
The Aschen certainly were persistent across multiple timelines, it seemed. They were almost like a Universal Constant. How persistently annoying.  
  
Keiko wrote up an email, and fired it off to the relevant parties, informing them that the Unwritten had restored contact.  
  
That done, she wrote up another email and sent it off to Mikari, letting her know of the upcoming holiday meet up reschedule.

* * *

  
A knock at the door to the O’neill family fishing cabin resulted in a careful opening of an observation slat, followed by the unchaining of the door locks, and then it was pried open.  
  
There, retired General Jack O’Neill peered out through the gap towards the man on the other side.  
  
“Daniel,” Jack said simply.  
  
“Hi, Jack,” Daniel Jackson said sheepishly, hands in pockets. “How’re things?”  
  
“Oh, good, you know how it is. Fishing. Family. Frying fish for family.” Jack listed off the obvious. “How about you? Do anything interesting lately?”  
  
Daniel frowned. “You’re not ticked off at me too, are you?”  
  
“Well, you don’t call, you don’t write,” Jack listed off reasons why he could conceivably be mad. “Then you come slinking back in pretending everything will be just fine. I’d have tons of reasons to be pissed off at you, honestly. But I think other people have more valid grievances than I do So I’ll let it slide.” Jack raised a finger. “For now.”  
  
“For now?” Daniel asked, questioning.  
  
“Trial basis,” Jack said, and then stepped aside. “Come in.”  
  
Daniel entered the cabin. Jack closed the door, and meandered over towards a stovetop where fish were frying away.   
  
“Sooo... How’s Sam?” Daniel asked, eyeing a framed photo of Jack, Sam, and their daughter.  
  
“Good, good,” Jack answered, monitoring the fish. “Took Ellie on this science-y get-away thing for the day. Apparently, and get this, New Langara has discovered a magical, mystical new way of coliding photons together to create fireworks!”  
  
“Fireworks? Really?” Daniel asked. “I mean, good for Jonas’ people, but... Fireworks?”  
  
“Okay, so they’re not really fireworks,” Jack answered, flipping the fish over to fry the other side in the pan. “More like a novel way to make holograms? I don’t really get it. We’ve got like, five or ten different ways to make holograms already? But apparently these ones can be Solid!”  
  
“Hard Light Holograms?” Daniel asked, blinking. “What, like the kind Merlin employed with his security devices?”  
  
“Something like that,” Jack shook his head. Then, he looked at Daniel, and gave an unreadable expression of some kind. Daniel couldn’t parse it, and he was usually good with parsing people’s facial expressions. “What brings you by, Daniel?”  
  
“Is it wrong of me to drop by an old friend’s house after coming back in town?” Daniel asked.  
  
“It is when you’ve had plenty of chances before now to come see me,” Jack answered.  
  
“I’ve been busy,” Daniel started.  
  
“Yes, and you’ve been busy for the last year, too!” Jack countered. “Fancy that! We’re all busy, Daniel. Doesn’t mean we don’t take the time to come and check in every once and a while!” He took a breath. “For Cryin’ Out Loud, Daniel, you were BETTER at checking in with us when you had Oversight hiring you on to play Imposter Sabotage against Anubis!”  
  
“This!” Daniel threw his hands out. “This is why I didn’t come by! Everyone’s been so pissed off at me for trying to solve an unsolvable situation!”  
  
“An unsolvable situation you put yourself into!” Jack countered. “Ascending to avoid getting crushed by a drunk driver!? Perfectly understandable! Staying that way for a YEAR because some Replicators got their souls stuck in digital purgatory!?”  
  
“Nobody else would help them, or COULD help them, for that matter,” Daniel stated for the record. “If I didn’t untangle that mess it was going to cause everyone problems. They were already at a point of frustration and thinking of coming to Atlantis for help!”  
  
“And then what?” Jack asked.  
  
“And then their half-ascended bodies EMP every electrical device in the city and fry the bio-electric nervous systems in every organic living being for a thousand light years!” Daniel countered.  
  
“Well WHY Didn’t you just TELL anyone THAT!?” Jack asked.  
  
“Because I was panicking and trying to salvage a situation before it got to the point of disaster!” Daniel countered. “And I didn’t want to make people panic by thinking I couldn’t pull it off and fix what was wrong!”  
  
“And if you’d told people that sooner then maybe Sarah wouldn’t have come over here after a month of no contact swearing how she was going to lock you out of your own apartment whenever you managed to come back!” Jack pointed out. “Maybe then your own Daughter wouldn’t have left three angry voicemails the day you came back!”  
  
“I screwed up, alright!?” Daniel asked. “Is that what you want me to say because it is! I screwed up and because I screwed up people are pissed at me! But if I didn’t do SOMETHING then those people might be DEAD instead of pissed off and-!”  
  
“And you should Tell Them That,” Jack interjected, and then had to turn back to his fish when it started flaring up from some grease catching aflame.   
  
Daniel let Jack salvage the fish in peace, and sat down at a table, head in hands as he tried to get a grip on his own emotions.  
  
Once Jack had the fish off of the pan, and plated it into a Food Temperature Preservation Sylladex box, he went and sat down next to Daniel.  
  
“How can I tell them that when most people are either testy with me or give me the stink eye and refuse to talk to me?” Daniel asked. “Most of the people in Archaeology won’t even acknowledge I’m there, half the time.”  
  
“Yeah, Sarah went on a bit of a rant,” Jack winced. “For. Ah. Quite a few days.”  
  
“What am I supposed to do about that?” Daniel asked. “She still won’t even talk to me.”  
  
“Apologize, explain what you just told me, and make it ABUNDANTLY clear you screwed up,” Jack said, decaptchaloging a pair of beer bottles and offering Daniel one before opening his own. He took a long swig before speaking. “Look, Daniel. You’ve basically been the universes’ plaything the last several years and you’ve had a lot of shit choices that take you away from the people you care about a lot of times. I get that. Maybe it’s easier to keep making those choices when the universe keeps putting them infront of you. But after a point you gotta stop and ask yourself.” He pointed at a photo on the wall.  
  
Daniel turned to look. He saw SG-1. Sam, Jack, Teal’c, Jonas, Mordred, Cam, Vala... Skaara?  
  
But no him. It had to have been taken in the intervening year.  
  
“When am I just fixating on self sabotaging instead of fighting to fix my mistakes?” Jack asked.  
  
Daniel remembered, a lot of mending of broken bridges Skaara had to have done over the years to restore his family’s faith in himself- and not just his familiy’s faith in himself, but his own faith in himself.  
  
Daniel remembered a time when Skaara had been panicked over learning his wife was pregnant, and how he was afraid he was going to repeat all the same running away mistakes that he’d done when he’d shoved care of Jade off on Jake Harley when Daniel had been taken over by a Goa’uld.   
  
He remembered. And Daniel remembered Jack asking that same question then to the Abydosian man.   
  
Skaara had fought against that pattern when presented with the same cycle for a second time. Became a person he himself had thought himself capable of being a good parent, and a good family man.   
  
Daniel opened his beer, and took a drink. Then, after several long moments, Daniel asked himself, aloud, “Do I have it in me to do better again? What if I’ve already screwed things up too badly?”  
  
“I dunno, Daniel,” Jack asked, “that’s up to you. And speaking of up to you. I still don’t think you came here for an emotional pep talk.”  
  
“You’re right,” Daniel nodded, then took another drink of his beer. “Gaah. I’m. I wanted to know if I was even going to be welcome at Christmas this year. I got an invitation in my email, but I don’t know if that’s just because they never bothered to take me off the mailing list.”  
  
Jack scoffed. “Sarah already did that, so someone had to have added you back in.” He took a sip of his beer. “Probably Jade, or Sam.”  
  
“What’s Sam even think of all this?” Daniel asked.  
  
“Oh, she’s had a few choice words,” Jack allowed. “But after a while she figured you had to have one hell of a damned good reason to be radio silent for so long.” He smirked, motioned at Daniel with his beer bottle, “And hey. Turns out you did.”  
  
Daniel rolled his eyes and took a drink from his beer.

* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 20TH, 2012.**  
  
June and Rose Egbert were doing some last minute shopping the Thursday before Christmas- and also the day before the scheduled Friday get-together.  
  
“Can’t believe Mom forgot to buy eggs of all things,” June muttered as they stood in line for the checkout.  
  
“It happens,” Rose smiled faintly.  
  
As they stood in line, though, June caught sight of something out of the corner of her eye. A Wind Morpher on someones wrist.  
  
“Hey,” June said suddenly, “I just realized I forgot to get something, too.”  
  
“Should we exit the line or-?” Rose was cut off by June shaking her head.  
  
“I’ll go get it and be back in a flash,” June said, and then exited the line. “Hold my place!”  
  
She headed off, using the breeze to track the person wearing that Morpher. Something was off. There shouldn’t be anyone wearing those except for the evil Ninja Team- a thing she still found to be an utterly confusing series of events that didn’t make any sense at all--  
  
And then June found herself grabbed by the arm and dragged into a bizarrely empty canned goods isle.   
  
June had her Overdrive Tracker in hand and ready to morph a second later- until the person who was accosting her used their other hand- not the one clad with the Wind Morpher- to hold June’s hand tight and prevent her from morphing.  
  
“Ssshshs!” The person before June, cloaked, and hooded figure with blonde hair and strikingly ambiguous eyes peering out from said hood. “Don’t draw attention by morphing!”  
  
June scowled, eyeing the person before her. She couldn’t make heads or tails of who exactly they were or what they even looked like. Were their eyes green like Fargo or were they the same violet shade of Rose’s eyes?   
  
“Who- or more better- what are you?” June demanded.  
  
“Just a friend,” the hooded figure smiled. “And I’m sorry for luring you away like that but I needed to give you an opportunity to make good on a promise, as well as deliver a message.”  
  
“What promise?” June asked.  
  
“I’m... one of several people who may or may not be responsible for your old team getting de-personified?” They gave a wry, embarrassed smile, and June tried to free either of her arms- or at least make a redoubled effort to morph.  
  
June found she couldn’t break free, however, for all her strength.  
  
“Sorry, but I’ll let you punch me in the face in a minute,” the stranger said, face growing serious. “I know who one of the surviving Evil Ninja Rangers is, and it’s someone you know.”  
  
June scowled. “How do I know it’s not you?”  
  
“June, look at the Moprher I’m wearing,” they rolled their ambiguous eyes.  
  
June looked, and saw that the Morpher on the stranger’s wrist was her OWN morpher. The Yellow Wind Morpher that had suffered extensive damage to it. Identical down to the CRACKS. “Shit- time loop!?”  
  
“Something like that,” The stranger said. “The person you need to be on the look out for is the Blue Ninja Ranger- Ridley.”  
  
“Ridley!?” June asked. “But she was there at the same time on Halloween!”  
  
“And they had a robot body double filling in for You,” The stranger reminded her.   
  
“...Fair point,” June said, and in that moment, the Stranger let go of her arms.  
  
June lashed out a second later and punched the stranger square in the nose, establishing superiority in this exchange.  
  
“OW!!” They staggered backwards, clutching at their nose. “Okay. Shit. I deserved that.”  
  
“Damn right you do!” June scowled at the stranger. “Grabbing me like that and saying you’re responsible for my team being erased from my own memory!? What the FUCK?! And what’s with that strange- weird- uh... Non persony thing you’ve got going on?”  
  
The Stranger gave June a pointed look over their hands, still clutching their nose, and said, “Take a wild guess.”  
  
June thought on the situation for a moment. Then, she groaned. “Fucking... the Ninja team wished to take over the lives of other people. So... Fuck. Their wish affected you somehow, didn’t it?”  
  
“I can neither confirm or deny the case, whatever it may be,” The Stranger said. “Feel free to make your own assumptions up about what I mean by that.”  
  
June scowled. “Are you or aren’t you?”  
  
“Let’s just say I’m a manifestation of the power that let that wish happen to begin with, and leave it at that,” the stranger said.  
  
“...Destoria?” June asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow.  
  
The Stranger laughed- eyes turning orange. “I’ll neither confirm nor deny, but that works for now.” They took their hands away from their face, nose seemingly unchanged from- wait, no, it was an entirely different nose structure.   
  
June realized they’d clearly abused their non-personage here to reset the damage to their own face. “Lousy Cheater.”  
  
“I may be a cheat, but I’m not a lousy cheater, unlike some people,” They shook their head, and put their arms at their side. “Look, I gave you a free shot, didn’t I? Some folk wouldn’t own up to that at any rate. Not put in the same position that we’re in.”  
  
June scowled. “What’s that even mean?”  
  
“It means I screwed up with that damned wish, and I’ve been trying to make it right,” ‘Destoria’ answered. “So. I’m giving you the freebie. Next time you see Ridley? Punch her out like you did me. And destroy the rest of those fake Ninjas too. Once they’re all gone, the wish will be canceled, and your team will come back into existence.”  
  
“That’s it?” June asked. “That’s all?! Why can’t I just wish to undo it right now? Make it so that wish never happened to begin with, huh”  
  
“For starters? I can’t undo that wish without upending and rewriting your entire reality for the last several months. I may have that power, but I won’t use it to that end. Do you know how much of a bloody mess keeping time travel STRAIGHT is without upending all the countless loops supporting your reality?”  
  
June frowned, “I mean. That’s a good point.”  
  
‘Destoria’ seemed disappointed for a moment, “Awh, you didn’t say the thing. I love it when you all say the thing.”   
  
June gave the probable manifestation of a Kanaema Stone a very un-approving look, and they quickly moved on from that.  
  
“As for the other reasons I can’t? Their wish is technically still in effect and TRYING to be granted. They missed YOU on a technicality, so they can’t complete the wish.” ‘Destoria’ explained. “If you end THEM, the wish can’t fulfill itself anyways, and so it automatically reverts. Plain, simple, easy as pie. Just keep finishing those Evil Robot Rangers Off and you get your team back.”  
  
“...What about Ridley?” June asked.  
  
“What about her?” ‘Destoria’ asked in turn. “She’s Lothor’s Niece. And not even in the strictly biological sense. Not even the marriage sense. Some kind of weird nebulous soul thing.” They shook their head. “Look, if it makes you feel any better, she’s a robot too- sort of. She’s like what Enter was trying to do with Escape. Card powers a robot that looks like a person. If you really want to ‘save’ her, sure, you’ll get by just destroying the body. But I’m not sure if the wish will fully revert or not if her card survives. I mean, I’ll TRY, but sometimes these things are out of my hannds. So you’re taking a gamble on your own team’s lives if you show her mercy.”  
  
“How should I trust any of what you’re telling me?” June asked.  
  
‘Destoria’ sighed. “Well. That’s actually a good question. You don’t have to. I mean, I could snap my fingers and MAKE you trust me, but that’s going beyond what I’m comfortable doing. Even all of this is stretching the bounds a bit.” They gave a sad smile. “I guess...” They grabbed a can of cranberry sauce off the shelf, and offered it to June. “It’s just a leap of faith. If you feel like the info I’ve given you is trust worthy, act on it. If you don’t trust it, don’t act on it.”  
  
June took the can, because she did need an excuse for what she went after, after all. “So what, you’re offering me a Choice like a fucking Denizen?”  
  
“That’s an apt metaphor, I suppose,” ‘Destoria’ mused, putting a finger on their chin, and scratching at the side with their thumb. “Yeah. Consider it A Choice, I guess. Do with it what you will. I’ll work with the decision and try and give the best outcome regardless.” They lowered their hand, and smiled, apologetically. “For what it’s worth, I’m truly sorry for the nightmare scenario I caused you. I really didn’t mean it to get that bad at the time. I just didn’t understand the implications of what was happening until it was far too late and details had to snap backwards in time to make things fit in place.”  
  
“Yeah, well. I won’t accept that apology until I get my team back,” June said.  
  
“And I’m not expecting you to forgive me anyways,” ‘Destoria’ shrugged.  
  
June stared at them for a moment, then asked- “Hold on. ‘One of’? You said you’re just ONE of the people who did this? Who are the others?”  
  
“Lothor’s one of ‘em,” ‘Destoria’ answered simply. “If you wanna punch him in the face, feel free. Dude’s been the fun kind of smug for nobody but himself. Oh, though, do be careful about that.” They put their right fist into their open left palm. “Lothor’s not exactly what he seems. I can’t say more than that, but just... do be wary around him.”  
  
“Can’t you tell me more?” June asked.  
  
“I would, but I literally don’t know at this stage,” ‘Destoria’ said. “Though, one thing I can warn you about is that Escape is in Iyo’s body. She’ll return at some point next year. Not sure when yet. Time’s still in flux on that. Just... Be wary. She’s not going to be very sane. The Kiramagers are going to need all the help they can get.”  
And then they checked their KI, wind morpher nowhere to be seen, and said, “Oh, look at the time. You gotta get back to the chekcout lane now or Rose is going to have a very embarrassing encounter with the checkout clerk trying to stall for time.”  
  
June swore. “Fuck. Fine. I’ll go.” She made to leave, then paused, and looked at the non-figure in the cloak. “... Will I ever see you again?”  
  
“Probably not, but who knows with how the future plays out,” ‘Destoria’ answered. “But be there at the endgame, and I might show up regardless.” They smirked. “Now shoo. Go save your sister from an embarrassing moment already.”  
  
June turned to leave, hurrying away back to the checkout.  
  
“Oh!” ‘Destoria’ shouted. “And Have a Merry Christmas!!”  
  
“Yeah, whatever!” June shouted back.  
  
It wasn’t until she was almost back in the checkout line that June realized she’d literally punched in the face a physical manifestation of one of the possibly truest god like beings that ever could exist in her reality.  
  
...And she didn’t quite care if that counted as something important or not, given all the pseudo gods her extended family had dethroned and disposed of over the last decade.   
  
“Cranberry sauce?” Rose asked when June re-entered the line. “June, if you’d said that’s what it was, I could have saved you the trip! We have plenty at home for the party tomorrow.”  
  
“Who says this is for the party?” June asked, forcing a smile. “I just love me my Cranberry sauce.”  
  
“Since when?” Rose asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow.  
  
“Since when does that even matter?” June rolled her eyes in turn. Why was she lying about this?  
  
Because really, who’d believe her at this point that some metaphysical spirit thing with shapeshifting powers told her that Ridley was an evil robot ninja ranger?   
  
...Not without proof, at any rate.  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 21ST, 2012.**  
  
Dr. Jennifer Keller looked at the test results, then back to Teyla, then back to the results, and smiled. “Good news, you’re in perfect health.”  
  
“Then...?”  
  
“You’re pregnant,” Keller answered. “Again.”  
  
Teyla blinked. And then nodded. “I figured as much.” A smile formed on her face, and her hands drifted towards her stomach. “Kanaan will be so happy...”  
  


* * *

  
"Teyla's pregnant?" Rodney asked as he and his wife walked down the road towards Joey Claire's house.  
  
"Ye~P," Keller said, popping the P for emphasis. "She's decided to take the day with Kanaan and Torren, so..."  
  
"So that's why we're lugging along the gifts she was slated to bring," Rodney rolled his eyes, and both he and Keller looked over their shoulders.  
  
Kaylee hummed behind them, an imagination train of hers cheerfully, yet silently, lugging along at her side, loaded up with gift boxes of normal Earth fashion and the Athosian style of gift presentation.  
  
"At least there's some mundane uses for magic powers out there," Rodney remarked.  
  
"Isn't there always a mundane use for anything?" Keller asked.  
  
"I mean, I can't think of a mundane use for exploding a ZPM?" Rodney offered.  
  
"...Damn, good point," Keller grinned in turn.  
  


* * *

  
"Hello, Mystic Blue."  
  
Serara Meiiko sighed as she paused in her reading.   
  
She was at a Cafe out in Diaspora's markets- a simple one that she didn't get harassed at frequently for the sheer fact she wore her Ranger Team Uniform practically everywhere like a badge of office- normally people just wanted to thank her for saving them or ask her if the Mystics could maybe patrol some part of a specific part of town some random day because they had some trouble makers giving them trouble.  
  
The voice didn't sound like that creep from the other day, though, so Serara wondered who it was going to be today when she looked up.  
  
She frowned as she looked up at the person who dared talk to her today, because the person across from her was decidedly not a person. Not like everyone else.   
  
A small flare of silver light flashed in the back of Serara's memories- a nightmare long since passed- and a comforting voice promising her previous life to give her a second chance after aiding her in her goals. 

The Villain who Won by borrowing a Keyboard.  
  
"Oh," Serara said, her crimson eyes meeting a pair of faintly glowing orange ones. "It's you." Not that she knew exactly who this person was, but she knew THEM, even in their nonpersony sort of vaguely... hole-in-reality-shaped-like-a-person-ness.  
  
"It's me," they smiled. "May I sit down?"  
  
"Sure," Serara nodded, and the entity sat down across from her. "What's... What can I do for you?"  
  
Serara wasn't sure what to make of any of this, save that she felt like she owed this person her life.  
  
"Just... ensuring a message is delivered," the person offered. "I'm here to give you a warning about the Blue Ninja Storm Ranger, if the other person I've warned doesn't take advantage of it."  
  
"Other person?" Serara asked.  
  
"June."  
  
"Oh. This is about June's team, right?"  
  
"Yep." A nod. "I can give you the full rundown after the TL;DR. Basically... Ridley. She's th--"  
  
"I fucking Knew It!" Serara swore, and got up from the table almost immediately- morpher in hand. "When I find that little traitor...!"  
  
She was off and running before the messenger could even finish talking.  
  
"...I should've seen that coming," they said simply. "...PROBABLY should've saved her for last, too."   
  
A pause. "Ah crap. I screwed that up. Really screwed that up."   
  
Shock formed on their face and they stood up sharply. "CRAP!"   
  
They took off at a run, chasing after Serara. "WAIT! I WASN'T FINISHED!!"  
  


* * *

  
Rose Egbert flipped open her Morpher as it chimed. "Hello?"  
  
 _"Rose? It's Serara,"_ Serara said. _"Where's somewhere we can meet? Like. Now??"_  
  
Rose looked around the crowded kitchen and living room of her family's house- everyone was gathered here this year and the conversation was already loud enough Rose could barely hear her teammate speaking over the line. "Can we meet outside my house?"  
  
 _"That works."_  
  


* * *

  
June frowned as she saw Rose slip through the crowded room after receiving a call like that.  
  
June followed her sister as she made her way past Jonas and Mitchel talking about something Jaffa related with Teal'c- past Jake and Chixie talking to Cassandra about some music deal Chixie had scored, and even past Daniel talking with a bemused Janet about something related to the Ascended plane...  
  
And then Rose was outside, and June hesitated a moment, seeing Serara waiting outside through the curtained door window. It was probably nothing important, but...  
  
"What's so important we have to meet right now?" Rose asked.  
  
June was about to turn to leave just as soon as she was certain it was nothing important.  
  
"Remember those infrequent dreams I've been having about my past life?" Serara asked.  
  
June blinked- since when had THAT been a thing that was happening?  
  
"What dreams were those again?" Rose asked, answering June's internal question. "I don't think you mentioned them to me before."  
  
"Uhh... Maybe that was Fargo then? Never mind that now, though," Serara shook her head. "Well. I think I just met the avatar of whatever energy spirit past me made her big old deal with."  
  
June was fascinated, but surely it wasn't important enough to eavesdrop on. June turned to leave.  
  
"...The-" Rose asked. "The spirit from the silver void?"  
  
"That's the one, except they had these bright orange eyes. Not a trace of silver in 'em at all, like I would've thought."  
  
June froze.  
  
Bright. Orange. Eyes?  
  
June turned and looked out the window once more.   
  
"Well, what did they say?" Rose asked.  
  
"They told me Ridley was Ninja Storm Blue," Serara answered.  
  
"What? But she was right there the-" Rose froze. "No. The Yellow one was there too despite June never being absorbed so-"  
  
"Ridley was trying to become Overdrive Silver, then Vanishes from the known Galaxy after Zahra gets to be Overdrive Silver instead? And then RIGHT AFTER that Ninja Blue suddenly has a murderous axe to grind against HER specifically for wearing the uniform?" Serara throws her hands out to the side. "It makes perfect sense when you think about it. They staged a performance with her outside of the suit so she could pretend to be a harmless civilian who CAN become a ranger!"  
  
"What else did they say?" Rose asked.  
  
"The Spirit? Oh, uh..." Serara blushed. "I, kinda... ran off before they were done speaking?"  
  
June facepalmed at the same time Rose did.   
  
"Sera! When ancient magical spirits are imparting wisdom on you, you listen!" Rose exclaimed.  
  
"Oh! They did tell me they told June about all of this already, so-"  
  
"You've got to be kidding me!" June said, stepping outside.  
  
"June!?" Rose asked- startled. "How long have you-!?" Whatever Rose was going to ask didn't get finished, because, well...  
  
"OiiiiI!" A certain someone came running up to the house, out of breath.  
  
June couldn't believe it- the same cloak wearing, orange eyed being from the other day had literally chased Serara across town to catch up with her.  
  
"Serara.... You... didn't let me finish...! Hooo...!" They bent over, hands on knees, wheezing for breath. "Why didn't I make myself supernaturally fit again? Uuurgh..."  
  
And then much to the three girl's shock, the cloaked figure collapsed straight to the ground.  
  
"Serara..." Rose began, mutely, in shock.  
  
"Yeah, Rose?" Serara asked, equally in shock.  
  
"Did you just out-run a supernatural spirit half way across town without stopping the entire time?" Rose asked.  
  
"...I guess I did," Serara answered.  
  


* * *

  
"Excuse us, pardon us," Rose said as she, June, and Serara carried the fainted person in through the back door and avoiding the crowd.   
  
"Official Ranger Business. Don't mind us," June added.   
  
"Oh, hi." Serara smiled brightly at Mordred, "Sorry to barge in, I'm just helping ensure a messenger doesn't die of exhaustion, is all."  
  
Indeed, nobody paid them any mind save for Mordred, who raised a mere eyebrow of concern, and Atsuya, who just stared on with a nagging sense of 'Oh, what the actual fuck is happening now?'   
  
Bullshit, Atsuya. Bullshit shenanigans were what was happening here.  
  
As those three then carried the unconscious cloaked figure up the stairs, Atsuya looked to Nepeta, who shrugged, and said, "Not the strangest Christmas Prank June's pulled off in the last five years. I'll give her credit for trying, though. I think that was Fargo pretending to be unconscious."  
  
"But 'official ranger business'?" Atsuya started.  
  
Nepeta considered it. "I'll go upstairs and ask once they're settled in."  
  
"Something was familiar with that person in the cloak," Daniel said to nobody in particular as casual conversation resumed among the Christmas Party.  
  
"Oh? And what's familiar about them?" Samantha O'neill asked, picking up on the plot hook.  
  
"I think they were a projected body by an Ascended being?" Daniel offered.  
  
"Ascended, you say?" Jack asked from half way across the room.   
  
"Indeed," Teal'c rumbled, "I too sensed a certain energy about them."  
  
Atsuya gave Nepeta the same look as before, and Nepeta sighed. "Alright, fine, let's go ask."  
  
The two of them headed upstairs, and Harley looked over at Tomo and Equius. "Do you think we should wait?"  
  
"Probably," Tomo shrugged. "Best not to crowd 'em if it's serious. And if it's another one of June's holiday pranks, I don't wanna get caught in the crossfire."  
  
"Reminds me of Crystalia's King, actually," Daniel said after a moment's more thought.  
  
"When you met him while Ascended?" Sam asked.  
  
"No, actually, he paid me a visit not too long ago in person," Daniel said. "I called him out on pulling an Anubis and being half ascended."  
  
Elsewhere in the room, you could hear Jade Jackson groaning in annoyance at the turn of conversation. She asked, "You know, you don't have to play along with one of June's pranks just to get an excuse to make stuff up like that, right, Dad?"   
  
"Who said I'm joking?" Daniel said. "Turns out apparently he stuffed his soul into some Kiramei Stone somewhere and has been pretending to be ascended the entire time. That was his loophole for working around the Others, before, well, they got Sangraal'd."  
  
Equius grimaced, "Damn it. Don't tell me..."  
  
"What's next?" Harley asked. "Mabushiina's mother's alive too?"  
  
"Yes, actually," Daniel said. "She apparently sealed her soul away into her crown?"  
  
There was a lot of chaos from the Kiramagers after that- a lot of shouting and yelling that lasted for about a solid minute before Nepeta and Atsuya came running down the stairs.  
  
Atsuya whistled sharply. "Hey! Everyone! We have to go. Doctor Kae needs us on the Beltus, ASAP."  
  
Harley looked at Daniel, and then said, "We'll talk more later about this."  
  
And then the Kiramagers ran off.  
  
"...So..." John Sheppard coughed politely. "Anyone else still think this is just another part of June's elaborate holiday pranks, or did things just turn really serious again?"  
  
"Gee," Jack O'neill remarked with a dry tone of voice, "What do you think, Sheppard?"  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile, in his own smoldering room of solitude, Moltor stood before a wall sized photograph of Necrolai.  
  
"My love to whom I didn't confess..." He bowed before her visage. "I will avenge your murder by slaying a Power Ranger!"  
  
And then the teleported away to parts unknown.  
  


* * *

  
**TO BE CONTINUED.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A Happy Hiveswap Act 2 Day (11/25) to Everyone Who Cares!   
> Next Chapter: MINISODE: It's just Dirk and Vriska this time.  
> \---  
> Well. That was a chapter. Let's dive into it, shall we?
> 
> Harry and Mei interacting with each other is building off of all the stuff with Mei that's planned for later in this act. It's vaguely shippy, but also not, for [spoiler] reasons.   
> \---  
> Tomo retrieves another one of these Zabyun stone fragments. It's been long enough that one needs to get recovered. Progress gotta get made on this quest here.
> 
> Meanwhile, Garuza broods over the theft the Kiramagers pulled on him. He's not sure how to respond to this... but oh, given some rumors of what we'll be seeing in the next major arc of Kiramager proper... I have some ideas of how it may turn out.  
> \---  
> There's more than one ranger team out there, so having them be the ones to start offing generals and kick start everything feels oddly appropriate after Enter got beaten.
> 
> It's a downwards slope from here, folks. Villains are on the rise... to the chopping block.  
> \---
> 
> Equius and Serara here are not being shipped together despite the situation setup. Serara's whole situation is questionable enough as it is without adding that to it. What she remembers, and what she doesn't... well, it's about time for us to dig into what she's been going through-it's all been background tier for long enough.
> 
> \---
> 
> June gets to punch me in the face. And I rightfully deserved it. 
> 
> This was in all honesty meant to be the culmination of where this plot thread ended- a literal punch line- but... well. You can see that I tried to double down, placing my bets across the board, and something went wrong there. 
> 
> What exactly went wrong? You'll find out soon enough. 
> 
> \---
> 
> Time. Is it really that time again? Yeah, I suppose it is. Time to post this chapter. See you next update!


	12. MINISODE: It's just Dirk and Vriska this time.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> See the title.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Dirk Strider.  
> Vaguely Meta.  
> Party Crashers.  
> Modded use of the saying "You look like someone kicked your puppy."

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 21ST, 2012.**  
  
Outside in a rather snow covered yard, Dirk Strider stared out into space as he felt the shifting tides of narrative. "Oh, God Damn it."  
  
"What is it now, Strider?" Vriska Serket asked, leaning against the door frame leading into the replica of John Egbert's childhood home. "You've been staring out into space for the last five minutes like someone kicked your goddamned big giant red puppy."  
  
"No, nobody kicked my puppy, giant or otherwise," Dirk answered, "but someone I know just did something incredibly stupid to ratchet up tension-- PROBABLY just to ensure a specific plot point actually happened in a way that makes some form of a cohesive narrative line."  
  
Vriska stared at the Ultimate Prince of Heart of this timeline, and then asked, "Strider, what the fuck are you even talking about?"  
  
Dirk didn't answer, because that's when Moltor and a horde of Magma themed foot soldiers teleported in outside the house.  
  
Moltor pointed his sword at Dirk- and roared- _"Where **ARE** the **POWER RANGERS!!?"**_  
  
"...Never mind," Vriska swore, and then shouted- _"HEY! KIDS! You got Guests who decided to party crash!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Turkey Day to those who celebrate it.
> 
> COULD this scene properly go into the second half of this two parter? SURE! Is it funnier as a standalone? 1000% YES.
> 
> Also, yes, that was a Clifford reference. The Dog looks like a Dog and I got no problems with the design. 
> 
> I'm still working through Hiveswap Act 2, so no real thoughts on it beyond it's done a good job of being funny when I'm not fighting off social anxiety preventing me from actually playing it lol. 
> 
> It's a weird moment when a video game triggers the "No no, don't bug them!" response when you HAVE to bug them to get things done. I'll say that much.
> 
> Next chapter: MSK: 01X22: "So you're crossing to the other side of the street?" (Play it Safe!)
> 
> Yeah, that's right, I shoved a Kiramager chapter in the middle of this two parter. TECHNICALLY, making it a 3 parter. I have no shame here.


	13. MSK: 01X22: "So you're crossing to the other side of the street?" (Play it Safe!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which it's time for the annual Christmas Episode. Sort of. Also, there's some suspiciously thievery behavior going on here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:   
> Time Travel  
> Soul Transference.  
> Author Insert/Some Meta.  
> Bank Robbery.  
> A group of thieves.   
> Picture Embedding and Linkage- Notify me if any links are broken, please.
> 
> NOTE:  
> I am not touching the Hiveswap Subject with a ten foot pole r/n due to Spoiler Concerns, so comments about it will not be posted immediately. Thanks in advance for any courtesy to not talk about it!

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 21ST, 2012.**  
  
"I think they're a manifestation of the Kanaema Stone, Destoria," June finished elaborating to Atsuya, Nepeta, Rose, and Serara. "Or, maybe a manifestation of the power all four stones have together? I dunno. They certainly seemed involved with the whole twisted wish thing, the way they said it, at any rate."  
  
"So that's why you came back with cranberry sauce," Rose realized.  
  
"Yeah," June grimaced. "Sorry, it just... y'know. Was weird and freaked me out a lot??"  
  
"I can see what you mean about maybe being Destoria," Atsuya said, after taking off his glasses. "They're really sparkly... like, made of sparkles and not actually... there? Like a Kiramei Stone without a stone, I guess?" He put his glasses back on. "It's giving me eye strain looking at them, actually."   
  
"So, just to summarize," Nepeta said, massaging at the bridge of her nose. "This random stranger wears your broken morpher to lure you into a conversation where they let you Punch Them In The Face?" June nods. "Then they tell you that Ridley- that girl from Halloween who ALSO suspiciously snuck onto Kanaya's zord during that while Iyo thing. The same Girl who was going to test into being Overdrive's Mercury Ranger until Zahra took the role, and then mysteriously vanished afterwards- is Ninja Storm Blue? And You decide to Keep that to yourself??"  
  
"I needed proof that I wasn't just hallucinating!" June pointed at the unconscious entity. "I think this is probably proof enough!"  
  
"We'll come back to that later," Nepeta said. "For now we ought to-"  
  
And then her Kiramei Changer sounded off.  
  
"Don't say a word," Nepeta warned everyone before striking her Morpher. "This is Nepeta."  
  
 _"Nepeta, good thing I reached you,"_ Gina's voice echoed out of the device. _"Mabushiina and I have figured out what's wrong with Drybe. We need the Kiramagers to come in. Now."_  
  
"Roger that," Nepeta said, ending the call, and going to say more, when shouting errupted from downstairs. "Oh for the love of-"  
  


* * *

  
Nepeta and Atsuya marched downstairs, and saw Harley, Equius, and Tomo shouting at Daniel Jackson.  
  
"We do not have time for this," Nepeta said.  
  
"Agreed," and then Atsuya whistled sharply. "Hey! Everyone! We have to go. Doctor Kae needs us on the Beltus, ASAP."  
  
Harley looked at Daniel, and then said, "We'll talk more later about this."  
  
And then the Kiramagers ran off.

* * *

  
_"When People Shine!" Mashin Fiya narrated, "Miracles are Born!"_   
  
_"Kiramental!" He continued. "The proof of Warriors who can Change the Future!"_   
  
_"Tension Maxed!" he shouted- "KIRAMEI GO!!!"_

[ _**MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER** _ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

The Kiramagers- the core five that is- arrived into the Beltus' Zord bay lounge to find Gina Kae, Mabushiina, [and three unfamiliar Power Rangers](https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/powerrangers/images/e/ed/Lupinranger.png/revision/latest?cb=20180102222949) standing there around both Drybe's shrunken Kiramei Stone and...

A second, charcoal or graphite grey Kiramei Stone, swirled with orange sparkles.  
  
"Ah, Rangers," Gina gave a tense smile. "I'd like to make some introductions. This is-"  
  
"We can make our own, thank you," the ranger in yellow said, stepping forwards, taking out her morpher- a blaster with a yellow miniature zord resting on it- and removing said miniature from it. "Power Down."  
  
The other two remained Morphed as the flash of yellow sparkles overcame the ranger in question.  
  
"Eeeh!?" Nepeta and Atsuya stared on as an older, teenaged form of Carry stood before them..  
  
"Hello," the alternian skinned girl with violet-purple eyes smiled. "Mom, Dad."  
  
Atsuya and Nepeta met the girl midway across the room for a large hug, and Tomo looked to Gina for an explanation. "What's going on?"  
  
"Reversia pulsed about an hour ago," Gina explained. "A portal opened, and these three came through after sending an appropriately coded Stargate Iris IDC for time travelers several years in the future from now."  
  
"We're a Ranger team that exists some time from now," The unknown Blue Ranger said. "Unfortunately, one of our enemies used a Stargate Wormhole during a solar flare to escape to the past."  
  
The unknown Red Ranger took it from there, "During his escape, however, we stumbled on this grey Kiramei Stone. Paradoxically, the origin body form for one of the Mashin Zords we partner with on a regular basis."  
  
"That's when I remembered Reversia's power," the future Carry explained. "And today, specifically. And we took a leap of faith and made a wish."  
  
"Now we're atleast a couple of days ahead of our enemy," The Blue Ranger stated. "And we've got some time to kill."  
  
"And a few outstanding time loops to fill out too," The Red Ranger nodded.  
  
"So... you know what's wrong with Drybe then?" Harley asked.  
  
"Know, and more than that," The Red ranger said. "Come to ensure our own future."  
  
"Thanks to their memories of what happened," Mabushiina started speaking, "I was able to deduce exactly what was wrong with Drybe." She paused, fidgiting with the hem of her jacket. "Unfortunately, it seems during your last major combination with Garuza and his Jouki stone during the fight with Enter, Garuza was sneaky, and uploaded a sort of... evil thing into Drybe."  
  
"It's not specifically Jamental, though it may be a derivative of it, and it's not even anything physically wrong. It's like a computer virus, to be more exact," Gina explained. "Enhancing, and amplifying differences between the soul and the stone housing it."  
  
"We can fix it, and remove the problem, but the only way we can do that is to completely reset the white stone itself that Drybe is housed in, which..." Mabushiina trailed off.  
  
"If we hadn't brought that grey stone, you guys wouldn't have any options for saving his mind to," the future Carry said.  
  
"So what you're saying is, Drybe becomes your team's partner with that grey Kiramei stone?" Equius summarized.   
  
"That he does," The Red Ranger nodded.   
  
"But... that leaves the white stone empty without anything to fill it once we've reset it," Nepeta started.  
  
"We were discussing that too," Mabushiina said. "However, these three said we didn't need to worry about it?"  
  
"Go on, tell them," The blue ranger said, looking to Harley in specific. "We didn't want to ruin the surprise."  
  
Harley frowned... then, "My bio-dad," she explained, "Doctor Jackson? He was ascended until recently, remember?"  
  
"We remember," Gina nodded.  
  
"He said King Oladdin recently told him that Mabushiina's spirit is alive and stored away on some stone that she saved herself onto," Harley continued.  
  
"My Mother...?" Mabushiina gasped. "The Crown! It was the only thing that didn't crumble into dust! If she saved herself onto it...!"  
  
"Go get the crown, I'll get things prepared for transferring Drybe onto the new Kiramei Stone," Gina said. "Rangers, why don't you-"  
  
And then an alarm sounded.  
  
"...Go deal with whatever that is!" Gina changed mid sentence.  
  
Atsuya went over to the table, tapped up a hologram, and scowled. "Jamenshi and Bechats... robbing a bank?"  
  
"Oh, right up our theme," The Red Ranger laughed.  
  
"Oi, don't ruin the surprise," the Blue Ranger chuckled, slapping his teammate in the arm.  
  
"What do you say we team up and take it out?" the Future Carry asked of her parent's team.  
  
"Let's do it so nobody's Christmas is ruined," Tomo decided.  
  
And thus, the rangers ran off to head down to Earth C.  
  
"I'll go get the crown," Mabushiina said, heading off.  
  
"And I'll... do what I said I was going to do," Gina nodded, and then went to see about getting Drijan's Zord Bay prepped for service again.

* * *

"Ahahah! What a haul!" [A Jamenshi wearing a large safe themed mask over his head said](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage22-safejamen.png) as he and several bechats stormed out of a Bank with stereotypical cash logo marked bags. "We're sure to hit the big mark tonight, boys!"  
  
"Bechaaa!" The Bechats cheered-- And then tanked laser blasts to the face.  
  
The Kiramagers came running up, unmorphed.  
  
"Hey, Jamenshi!" Nepeta shouted. "What are you doing!?"  
  
"Isn't it obvious, Kiramagers?" The Jamenshi asked. "IT'S A BANK ROBBERY!" he motioned at his Bechats. "Me and my friends have aa free-for-all day off and we're doing our due dillagence and going on a robbing spree!!"  
  
"But it's Christmas!" Nepeta pointed out the season.  
  
"Then it's a CHRISTMAS Bank Robbery!" The Jamenshi snapped. "Just get out of our way! We're not even here for official empire business! You don't have to fight us!"  
  
Atsuya pointed at the Jamenshi, "If you don't want to fight then surrender now and return that money!"  
  
"Not happening," The Jamenshi replied. "I'm Safe Jamen! And this money is safe in my vault!" Said vault door of his mask opened wide- revealing a gaping hole that sucked in every bag of money the Bechats had- and then sealed shut. "Nobody's taking our haul away from us! Not even YOU, Kiramagers!"  
  
 _["Then how about some thieves?"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAZXpGzkfO0)_  
  
Everyone froze, and turned to look as the future Carry sauntered out of an alley- wearing a fancy costume complete with a masquerade mask shaped after a yellow canary. Her ranger teammates were just behind her, actually demorphed, but you still couldn't see their faces because they were wearing even MORE Elaborate, and very holiday themed masks.  
  
"What the...?" The Jamenshi asked, staring at the trio. "Just who the heck are you!?"  
  
"Shall we do the thing?" Carry asked, looking towards Atsuya.  
  
"Let's!" Atsuya raised his Morpher, tapping it. __"KIRAMEI GO!"__  
  
The others followed suit, and the five Kiramagers called out- "KIRAMEI CHANGE!"  
  
The three unknown rangers pulled out their blaster morphers, and slid on the jet themed zord objects to the sides, ( __"RED! BLUE! YELLOW!"__ ) before twisting the guns so that the zords in question were on the top, where they could easily reach the dials, and turn them.

 ** __"0-1-0!/2-6-0!/1-1-6! MASQUERADE!"__**  
  
"KAITOU CHANGE!" They shouted pointing their blasters at the Jamenshi and Bechats, and firing.  
  
As the Kiramagers transformed with a burst of sparkles- energy blasts shot out of the guns, spiraling forwards, smashing into the enemy lines and bouncing back with an explosion.  
  
The energy shots came down upon the trio- the Kiramagers finished morphing.  
  
 _ **_"LET'S SPARKLE!"_**_  
  
A trio of flash of lights finished the sequence for the other three as they roll called.  
  
"Lupin Red!"  
  
"Lupin Blue!"  
  
"Lupin Yellow!"  
  
"Kaitou Sentai!" The trio called out.  
  
 ** __"LU~PIN~RANG~EEER!"__** Their morphers sang out, finishing the roll call.  
  
"Arriving in a Flash! Dispatching Evil with a Blast!" The Kiramagers called out.  
  
"Mashin Sentai!" Atsuya called out.  
  
"KIRAMAGER!"  
  
 _"Wa-wawawaaahhhaat!?"_ The Jamenshi pointed between the two teams. Then, his hands went to his head in shock. "Who the heck-! Thief Rangers!?"

* * *

Kurantula froze as an alert went up in his private quarters.  
  
"Oh no." He hung his head, and went out to his flooded room of operations. There, indeed, a screen was showing the Kiramagers fighting against an unauthorized Jamenshi who seemed to be outside a bank he just robbed...  
  
And the Kiramagers weren't alone- considering there was yet a NEW trio of brightly colored heroes fighting against the Jamenshi too.  
  
Kurantula just groaned, placing his hands against his face mask. "Why today. _**WHY TODAY!?"**_  
  


* * *

  
While the Kiramagers took on the Bechats...  
  
The Jamenshi didn't stand a chance. The Lupin Ranger trio were on him faster than he could react- Blue holding his head steady- Red holding the REST of him steady- and Yellow expertly disarming every lock and trap on his mask's face.  
  
"GAAAAAAH! NO! DON'T TOUCH THERE!" The Jamenshi protested.  
  
Then- the face plate was pulled open, and the Money forcibly ejected back to the ground.  
  
Suspiciously, some of the bags of money ALSO transformed back into people once ejected.  
  
"What a creep!" Harley remarked, fighting off a Bechat, "He stole PEOPLE as money too!"  
  
"Quickly, get out of here!" Atsuya advised, taking out more Bechats, and the people ran off.  
  
The Jamenshi broke away from the Lupinrangers, and threw his mask closed. "Damn it! YOU COWARDLY THIEVES!" he then ran off. "I'LL BE BAAAAAAACK!"  
  
"Not likely," Lupin Red said, charging his morpher by twisting it.  
  
The other two Lupin Rangers followed suit, activating their morphers with power up intentions.  
  
"Fire!" They shouted- and then they fired off three strikes at the Jamenshi- hitting him in the back and utterly obliterating him on the spot...   
  
Save for his mask, which bounced away from the explosion like a rubber ball made out of solid steel.  
  
The surviving Bechats, realizing they'd been had, quickly ran away.  
  
"What the--?" Tomo looked around. "Since when do Bechats get cold feet!?"  
  
Nobody paid attention as a Bechat sneakily grabbed the mask as it bounced their way, because the Bechats had run off.

* * *

  
Kurantula sighed as the Bechat brought him back the Safe Mask. "Maaan. I was saving you for when we officially resumed things...!"  
  
He looked at the Bechat in question, sitting there idle, as if waiting..  
  
"You know what? Screw it! I'll make it an official attack then!" He linked the Jamenshi mask to the appropriate Jamenju mask, and then appointed the Safe Mask onto the Bechat's head. "Transform, bechat! Become Super Safe Jamen Mark Two!"  
  


* * *

  
The Kiramagers and Lupinrangers waited in the room overlooking Drijan's Zord Bay. Carry had de-transformed again, though the other two remained morphed again.  
  
"You're not turning back?" Tomo asked, eyeing the Blue Ranger.  
  
"We'd rather not right now," Lupin Blue replied. "This is Carry's time right now." He nodded over at the girl, conversing with her parents.  
  
"So, thief rangers, huh?" Nepeta asked, a teasing smile on her face.  
  
"Weeeell, it's more that we steal from the bad guys who stole stuff already," Future Carry answered. "And then we return it to where it belongs!"  
  
"Stealing back what gets stolen... that sounds like fun," Atsuya smiled.  
  
"It can be," Future Carry said, her own smile being a bit tense. "Atleast, it is when our team isn't fighting itself."  
  
"Infighting?" Harley asked of the Red Ranger.  
  
"Let's just say," Lupin Red shook his head, "there's a reason only three of us came into the past, that wasn't just for 'keeping a defense in the present' reasons, and leave it at that."  
  
"The concept's Offense Versus Defense," Lupin Blue said. "Despite that, though, when we first morphed, the power set ended up being stylized after Thieves and Detectives- because the Morphing Grid has a trolling sense of humor at times."  
  
"Cops and Robbers," Equius rephrased it, grimacing.  
  
"Exactly, and despite us being put on the same team, we tend to clash a lot," Future Carry sighed. I think Ma-ER, Green and Pink are coming around to seeing how dumb it is, too, but. Well..."  
  
"I've offered an olive branch how many times to that stubborn Crimson?" Lupin Red asked. "He's the one that keeps trying to 'arrest' us. I swear, some people just take these things way too seriously."  
  
"Then again, hasn't he always had a problem with you for one reason or another?" Lupin Blue asked.  
  
"I've asked him if he wants me to be his Kismesis and that just pissed him off even more," Lupin Red griped. "No way am I pressing the issue. Not until we get someone to balance out the team a bit more."  
  
"Sounds like a royal mess if you ask me," Tomo stated for the record.  
  
The three Lupinrangers started snickering, chuckling, and giggling respectively at that.  
  
"Oh, wow, that sums it up perfectly, doesn't it?" Red asked.  
  
"It really does," Blue nodded.  
  
"Oh boy. Does it ever!" Future Carry nodded.  
  
The ship's intercom in the room buzzed, and Gina reported, "We're about to begin the transfer."  
  
Everyone went over to the window and watched.  
  
Atsuya took off his glasses for a moment and saw much of the same as he saw with the Jouki transfer- with Drybe's personality matrix being offloaded from the white stone onto the graphite stone.   
  
Fortunately, the restraining grips weren't needed this time, and the transfer went smoothly without needing to compress the back half of Mashin Express down in scale. Expanding the new stone, however....  
  
"Ah, yeah, that's Goodie alright," Carrie nodded.   
  
"Goodie?" Nepeta asked.  
  
"Good Striker," Lupin Red said, "It's what Drybe calls himself in our time."  
  
Once the transfer was complete, Gina Kae reported- "We're wiping the white stone of the virus program now... This might take a while, so get comfortable, kids."  
  
An alarm sounded then- the Jamenshi alarm, to be specific.  
  
"...Or not," Gina hung her head and looked up at the observation room window. "Get out there and stop whatever's attacking now."  
  


* * *

  
The Jamenshi was back- almost exactly the same in terms of appearance except for a slightly more muscular build.  
  
"GRAAAH!" He shouted, spewing a spray of golden breath onto people- transfiguring them into statues.  
  
There was also this difference, as well.  
  
"What the-?" Harley asked as the Kiramagers ran up to the scene, already suited up. "It's the Safe Jamen again?"  
  
"We blew him up, though," Lupin Red said as he and his team joined them a second later.  
  
"You blew up my Aniki!" The Jamenshi shouted, turning at them. "And now I'm **MAD! _SUPER MAD! I'M HOWLING MAD SAFE JAMEN! I'LL TURN YOU ALL INTO STATUES!!!"_**  
  
"I guess you could say we wouldn't like him when he's angry?" Equius offered.  
  
 _ **"RAAAH! DON'T YOU PUN AT ME!**_ " Mad Safe Jamen shouted. _ **"BECHAAAAATS!!"**_  
  
Bechats wearing golden armor swarmed into the scene- clearly buffed by their allied Jamenshi.  
  
A few of them, too, seemed irrationally angry- likely more survivors of the previous battle- they had one distinction over the others- THEIR masks were gold, but otherwise the same.  
  
Then, the battle began- everyone fighting against the definitely powered up monsters.  
  
"Wah!" Nepeta shouted, as she recoiled from a punch against that golden armor. "That armor hurts!" She looked at her hand- and saw it was coated in gold dust. "And it's freshly painted, too!"  
  
"Try not to get it on you or you might turn into a statue, too!" Tomo warned everyone.  
  
"GOOD IDEA!" The Jamenshi bellowed- blowing more golden smoke into the air.

* * *

Rose Egbert hummed idly as she flipped through pages of a magazine. It wasn't anything special that she hadn't read a dozen times over, but being 'voluntold' to keep an eye on the mysterious stranger while June and Serara kept everyone downstairs distracted was... well... Somewhat boring.  
  
The Stranger awoke then, groaning. "Damn it. Where am I?"  
  
"A guest bedroom," Rose answered.  
  
"Shit," The cloaked stranger sat up, glancing around the room with eyes that shifted color. "I really screwed up this time."  
  
"So Serara and June have told me," Rose said.  
  
"...Right," The cloaked stranger looked at Rose, eyes settling on orange. "So, uh--"  
  
"You are Not Destroia given physical form," Rose deduced off the bat.   
  
"...Oh wow, you even had the same facial expression and everything," The stranger seemed amused for some reason. "Also, yeah, busted. Haha. What gave it away?"  
  
"Serara's apparent reclemation of past life memories, mostly, and that you approached her to deliver the same message you'd given June," Rose shrugged, putting the magazine away in her sylladex. "Given what I know of Damara Megido's rampage across the Milky Way to create that Dimensional Mirror Gate, and the far reaching implications of her actions on the Multiverse at large... plus the fact that the Kanaema Stones have never appeared until recently... I'm willing to wager that you're something else entirely. Something that the Kanaema Stones likely have to bargain with to even work here. Perhaps they need Authorization, as it were?"  
  
The stranger laughed for a moment. "That is true," They nodded. "You could say I'm the thing that Authorizes them to function. Just as I Authorized Damara... Serara now... to do the things she did. Still. 'Destoria' works for a name if you have to call me anything right now."  
  
"And you can't un-authorize something now that you've authorized it, except by authorizing some other thing to fix the damage?" Rose guessed.  
  
"I mean, I could, but that'd just be splintering time into an offshoot reality," 'Destoria' shrugged. "I'd like to keep things a bit more tidy than that." They frowned. "Oh. That explains why I screwed up talking with Serara. Time Travelers showed up and diverged the timeline when I was talking with her. I did NOT see that coming when I went to talk to her."  
  
"You honestly mean that?" Rose asked.  
  
"See, I was supposed to give Sera' the whole run down, but then she got up and left," 'Destoria' explained. "I vaguely remember that actually starting to happen before everything got overwritten by..." They scowled. " _Ahrgh. Reversia!_ Of course Reversia would do that."  
  
"So you're not omnipotent towards the future that sits before us now?" Rose asked.  
  
"Nope!" They shrugged. "I'm as locked in the heat of the moment as you are, give or take a little wiggle room."  
  
"Such as predicting Iyo's body returning with Escape's soul in it?" Rose offered.  
  
"See, there's the rub. I KNOW someone's going to show up doing some super shady shit that's about to go down, but I don't have a lock on the identity," they explained. "I'm _Assuming_ , based on _**EVERYTHING**_ that's gone down so far, that it's going to be that situation. Body Soul Possession of a now soul-less body. But..." They smirked. "You all have more than enough free will to muck things up for my assumptions. Because, you know what they say About Assumptions."  
  
"They make an Ass out of You and Me," Rose supplied.  
  
"Indeed!" 'Destoria' nodded. "See, I just see potential possibilities of the future as I'm working behind the scenes. It's you lot who decide how things go in the heat of the moment. I really dislike overwriting those choices once they've happened and are set in stone- especially once time travel gets involved."   
  
"Like how you'd almost certainly be erasing all of this if not for time travelers showing up?" Rose asked.  
  
"Yeeeep," they sighed. "I really did not mean to be talking to too many people. Seriously. I'm not that kind of self indulgent person. Let June punch me for my mistake- I should've just left it at that! But no, I had to double down and warn Serara too. This is all really pushing it too far."  
  
"Your past actions with Serara's apparent past life say as much," Rose mused. "They do speak of someone who went to a great deal of trouble to avoid stepping on too many toes except those of those who would step on peoples toes."  
  
'Destoria' giggled. "Yeeeah. Sometimes you gotta do stuff like that."  
  
"Well, if you need to leave, I won't stop you," Rose said.  
  
"Thanks, not that you could," 'Destoria' stood, and retrieved a Relto book from their sylladex. "See? I can link!"  
  
"Then why did you run all the way here?" Rose asked.  
  
"Because I was a dummy and forgot to enhance myself again like I did when I talked to June," 'Destoria' answered. "And then I was just locked into the course of action and couldn't undo it."  
  
"So even those who authorize are fallible, hm?" Rose asked.  
  
"Pretty much," they nodded. "We're not gods, well, not with how I see things. I'm sure there are those who do see themselves as gods, but... not me. I'm just a humble chronicler who sometimes has the authority to make an executive decision to authorize and follow one set of events over another." They smiled, then said, "And beyond that, I don't see realities such as these as ones that end just because someone isn't paying attention to it from another perspective, an outside perspective."  
  
"I'd be willing to ask how much of our own timeline you've had to do that on, but something tells me I wouldn't like the answer," Rose said.  
  
"Neither would I," 'Destoria' answered, placing the Relto book to their hip. They hesitated in opening it for a long moment. "One more thing, before I go. Another warning."  
  
"And what's that?" Rose asked.  
  
They opened their mouth, hesitated again, then said, "Things outside of this reality are going to get rough. Really rough. I don't know how tough, or rough, or bad, but... It'll happen. And when it does, it'll probably echo into here, somehow. That's probably ontop of how bad things are going to get here regardless. Too many converging scenarios. I can't predict how it'll go until it happens."  
  
"And by then it's too late to give a warning," Rose mused.   
  
"Pretty much," they nodded. Their right hand hovered over the Relto Book, fingers flexing, twitching, seeking for escape. "I like this world-line. I like this reality. I like how better it's become. If... if things get to be their darkest, and things start spiraling out of control..."   
  
They took a moment, considering their words carefully.   
  
"I'll Authorize you, Rose, to make an extra wish on the full Kanaema Stone set, beyond what the Kiramagers plan on using it for. Put things back on the rails if I'm not there to help keep things straight."  
  
Rose Egbert blinked, confused. "Why me?"  
  
'Destroia's' eyes shifted to a purple hue identical to Roses, and they smiled, "Take a guess."  
  
Then, they opened the Relto book and linked away.  
  
 _ **VVVRRRRMMMSSHShshsh....**_  
  
Rose sighed. "Lovely. Absolutely lovely."  
  
She shook her head, got up from her seat, and headed back downstairs to rejoin the party now that her job was done.  
  


* * *

  
Lupin Red, Equius, and Tomo were frozen as statues by the time the above meandering had finished.   
  
The surviving rangers regrouped behind cover, glaring over it at the Jamenshi through their helmets.  
  
"Soon... I'll take everyone from you, THEN! I'll take this entire world!" The Jamenshi rambled, stomping around his little garden of golden trophies. **_"AND THEN! I'LL TURN THIS ENTIRE GALAXY INTO A GOLDEN TREASURE TO HOARD TO MYSELF!!!"_**  
  
"There's got to be something we can do," Harley started.  
  
"I've got an idea!" Atsuya said, tapping his Morpher. "Zabyun! C'mere!"  
  
"I've seen it all! What can I do for ya, boss?" The Aqua Stone decaptchalogued from said morpher.   
  
"Spear mode, with a spare blaster!" Atsuya said. "We'll study that curse and reverse it!"  
  
"Gotcha!" Zabyun transformed on the spot- "MASHIIIIIIN!"  
  
Atsuya was then armed with three fourths of the Mashin- the remaining piece, the left arm screw blaster, landed on the ground between them. "I'll take the Aqua Blaster, and power wash those Bechats so we can beat them! Meanwhile, Harley takes Zabyun and gets the spell magic for the goldification- finish him if you can!"  
  
"I'll do my best," Harley said, nodding as Atsuya handed her the spear.  
  
"Don't worry, Harley. We'll handle the rest just fine," Nepeta said with a nod.  
  
"Let's go!" Atsuya said, and the team scrambled from behind cover, armed with their weapons.  
  
"AH! There you are!" The Jamenshi whirled around. **_"BECHATS! GET THEM!"_**  
  
Then, Harley was on him in a flash, swinging around the spear weapon and trying her best to stab the damned Jamenshi clean through.  
  
Meanwhile, Atsuya rushed around the battlefield, firing the Zabyun screw blaster at the Bechats- power washing away the gold paint covering their armor. Once thoroughly disenchanted, the Bechats proved to be easy prey for the other rangers.  
  
Harley slashed, and stabbed, and generally deflected the Jamenshi's attacks- both with his rake staff and with his gold breath.  
  
"OOOORAAA!! That won't do a thing to us!" Zabyun said, absorbing the spell in chunks and pieces as the fight continued on.  
  
"Why youuuu!" Mad Safe Jamen shouted and ditched his staff to throw a punch- which Harley blocked with Zabyun's pole-length handle... Which flashed gold the moment before impact. CLANG! "OW!" He recoiled, shaking his hand out, finding it clad in gold dust.  
  
"I got that Armor spell too!" Zabyun laughed.  
  
"You Thief!" Mad Safe shouted.  
  
"Wrong Team!" Lupin Blue shouted- and the Jamenshi turned around, finding the Kiramagers and Lupin Rangers had beaten the Bechats- and were aiming their weapons at him.  
  
"Oh... Oh No...!" The Jamen started to panic.  
  
"I've got all your tricks now!" Zabyun declared. "Let's finish this, SHAAAA!!"  
  
"I've got your scent now, Jamenshi!" Harley shouted as Zabyun lit up in her grasp with Kiramental. _**_"KIRAMEI CHARGE!"_** _She struck a preparing to launch pose, and shouted, **_"KIRAMEI LIGHTNING IMPACT!"_** And with a wave of water roaring behind her, Harley threw her arms forwards- spearing Zabyun forwards like a javelin toss.  
  
 _"OOOOOORAAAAAA!"_ The Spear indeed land true- piercing through the Jamenshi's body and clearing through immediately.  
  
 ** __"CHECKMAGE!"__**  
  
The Jamenshi started sparking- his death a certainty... but the Mask? Not so much.  
  
Ensuring this job was over- the Kiramagers and Lupinrangers fired off their own blasters and struck the Jamenshi... Clean in the head, targeting the mask, and blowing off the safe door clean from the front of it..  
  
 _ **_"CHECKMAGE!"_**_  
  
 **"THIS SAFE'S....** _CRAAAAAAACKED!"_ Mad Safe Jamen yelled as Zabyun returned to Harley's grasp with a flash of her teleporting powers.   
  
"And that's game," Harley said, turning her back as the Jamenshi exploded.  
  


* * *

  
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Kurantula shouted, stomping into the water. "That damned Jouki just doesn't stop being a problem in their hands, doesn't it!?"  
  
He checked the pressure gauge on his staff... "...Just enough darkness energy for the Jamenju with Insurance."  
  
He smirked.

* * *

Stone form once again, Zabyun glowed with healing waves of energy, and the statue curse was immediately dispelled over the Safe Jamenshi's victims.  
  
"That was a nasty curse," Zabyun said. "Fueled by rage, that would've lasted a long time past the Jamenshi's death without me studying it first."  
  
"Boy are we glad you were around to fix it, though," Lupin Red said.  
  
"I'm just glad to not have to go a round three with that same Jamenshi," Equius said, rolling his shoulders.  
  
"Thank you, Harley," Tomo said with a nod to their girlfriend. "That was some fancy spear-work."  
  
"Did you see it?" Harley asked.  
  
"Just barely had the right angle for it," Tomo giggled. "But I did!"  
  
Atsuya's morpher chimed- and he answered it. "Yeah?"  
  


* * *

  
"I'm pleased to report that the transfer of Queen Mabayuine into the back half of Mashin Express was a complete success," Gina reported, watching as the small stone darted around Mabushiina, asking things like, 'Have you been going to bed on time?' or remarking 'Oh look how big you've gotten!'   
  
Mashin Express's back half stone looked identical to how it normally did, except for the fact that some of the white stone along the front face that was originally a more transparent white had shifted to a more powdery, sky blue color. This made it rather obvious to passing observiers that something major had happened, soul wise.

* * *

"That's great news," Atsuya said-- and then there was a roar of energy above them all.  
  
A portal opened, and dumped a towering Jamenju down onto the field- a Rigani type, with a massive gold mask atop its head.

_"GOOOOOOOOOM!!!"_

"Ah... could you ask the Queen if she's up for a field test?" Atsuya asked. "Because we might need her right now if that's alright?"  
  


* * *

  
"Would I like to fight against some badguys!?" Mabayuine asked- darting over to Gina. "Of course I would!" Then, she turned back to Mabushiina. "Please, ride with me, 'Shiina!"  
  
"Of course I will, Mother," Mabushiina said, clutching the now soul-empty crown in her hands.  
  
"Let's go!" Esprez said- darting over as well. -  
  


* * *

  
One teleport later...  
  
"MASHIIIIIIN!" seven zords shouted out, transforming.  
  
"MASHIN GATTAI!" the Mashin shouted. "KIRAMAGEIN!"  
  
 _ **_"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"_**_  
  
"MASHIN GATTAI!" Zabyun and Esprez called out. "COMPLETE! ZABYUN EXPRESS!"  
  
 ** __"ZABYUN EXPRESS!"__**  
  
Atsuya sat inside Esprez's cockpit, meanwhile, Mabushiina sat within Express' secondary cockpit.  
  
"Welcome aboard, princess," Atsuya nodded over a screen.  
  
"Thank you, Atsuya," Mabushiina nodded in turn.  
  
"Oh! It's been ages since I've fought a badguy!" Mabayuine said. "Let's do this!"  
  
"Just follow our lead, your majesty!" Zabyun said.  
  
"Of course!" The Queen agreed.

_**"GOOOOOM!!!"** _

The Gold Stone Rigani turned towards the two Mecha after satisfying its initial attack rampage lust on turning some buildings into solid gold, then, it unleashed its breath attack on the rangers.  
  
Zabyun Express rocketed aside at speed- dodging the curse... But Kiramagein wasn't so lucky. [The Mashin were frozen solid into a statue](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage22-treasurejam3.png).

"Wah! We've been petrified!" Harley shouted- though, she,[ like the other Kiramagers inside the now golden cockpits of their Mashin partners](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage22-treasurejam4.png), was left untouched.

"Atsuya!" Tomo called out. "Finish that beast before we get turned to stone again too!"  
  
"Got it!" Atsuya nodded. "LET'S GO!"  
  
Zabyun Express rocketed forwards with the Jaws Attack-- the Rigani swung its tail at them, blocking it, but it left itself open for the followup punch from Zabyun Express's left screw hand.

_**WHAM! "BWOOOMHP!"** _

Stunned, it didn't stand a chance as it got kicked in the lower jaw from below.  
  
"How Intense!!" The queen shouted. "I LOVE IT!"  
  
"M-Mother!?" Mabushina asked, startled.  
  
The Jamenju unleashed another burst of golden smoke.   
  
"DISPEEEEEEEELL!" Zabyun Express spun on the spot- dispelling the smoke- and leaped into the air.  
  
[They came to a halt high up in the air, almost starfish posed.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage212zabyunexpress-pose.png)

"Let's finish it, Everyone!" Atsuya called out.  
  
"LET'S DO IT!" The Queen shouted- very excited.  
  
"Y-Your Majesty??" Esprez asked- startled.  
  
"OOORAAA!" Zabyun pushed past it, and aimed his arms down at them- his knees glowed with kiramental as well as said arms. "ZABYUN MEGALOBLASTER!" 

_**WHOOOOOOMMMM!** _

Four beams of energy shot down and smashed into the Jamenju- obliterating it with an explosion on the spot.

  
...And then Zabyun Express landed in the very spot it'd been standing in mere seconds ago as light gleamed around them like a rainbow.

_**_"CHECKMAGE!"_** _

"OH COME ON!" Kurantula shouted, stomping his feet into the water. "I'm starting to feel how frustrated Garuza must have been when they kept stealing Jouki from him...!"  
  
He paused.  
  
"Wait a second, where is Garuza anyways!?"  
  
Kurantula looked it up on a search screen- then he shouted out in shock as he saw something completly unexpected.  
  
 _ **"MOLTOR!!! YOU IDIOOOOOOOOOOOT!"**_  
  


* * *

  
Kiramagein was de-goldified a few moments later.  
  
"Thank you!" Fiya said, moving Shovellow to clasp hands with Zabyun Express.  
  
"You're welcome!" Zabyun answered.  
  


* * *

  
The Lupin Rangers gazed upwards, and Red turned towards Carry, asking, "Well, did it work out alright?"  
  
"Very," Carry nodded. "I missed helping with this the first time, so I'm glad I could help this time around."  
  
"Let's go find our own target now that History's for sure on the same course," Blue offered.  
  
"Definitely," Carry nodded, and then the three Lupin Rangers headed off into the shadows... a mission of their own to carry out somewhere else.  
  


* * *

  
_**KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!** _

"Wait, why's the Belly of Mashin Express blue now?" Nepeta asked.  
  
"Because the stone reflects the sparkles of the soul!" Mabayuine said, boasting proudly as she sparkled before them.  
  
"It's actually to make it more color coordinated with Zab--" Gina started to answer.  
  
 _"BECAUSE THE STONE REFLECTS THE SPARKLES OF MY SOOOOOOOOUL!"_ The queen interjected, shouting over the Doctor.  
  
"...She's been cooped up in that crown for too long, hasn't she?" Mabushiina asked rhetorically.  
  


* * *

  
 _ **NEXT KIRAMAGER!**_  
  
"HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOO! RELEEESHAAAAAAAAANNN!!" The Jamenshi roared.  
  
"It's too loud!" Nepeta covered her ears.  
  
"We'll have to bare through it while we look for that stone!" Atsuya declared.  
  
"This girl's the daughter of the one I saved?!" Heliko asked, astonished.  
  
"LET'S ROCK AND ROOOOOOOOOOLL!!!" Mabayuine shouted.  
  
"Hey! That's my line!" Rolland protested.  
  
 **NEXT EPISODE: 23: "No Rhyme or Reason, No way to make easy 'til it's done." (Turn it Down!)**  
  
"Ah... let's sparkle next time too, alright?" Atsuya offered.  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. This Self Insert. I wrote this chapter just before all that Election Nonsense, and I was covering my bases incase real life circumstances prevented me from writing anything more after this point, because... You never know how things go these days. One tiny innocuous thing can cause far reaching, grand ripples in the fabric of reality. I'm still half-braced for things to get suddenly worse, just in the worst case scenario, but those concerns I have now are not the concerns I had when writing this chapter or this series of events. Life changes. You're literally viewing how the me of several weeks ago saw things. 
> 
> That's not to say my authorization of Rose to have a second wish on the Kanaema Stones isn't still in play, of course. But it's one extra wish and one extra wish only. On THAT I'm not budging.  
> \---
> 
> LU~pin~RAN~GeeeeeeeR!
> 
> Yeah. The thieves get to show up. Heh. LuPat is a hard concept to deal with ordinarily, so I'm vaguely touching on it here, just a smidge. Truthfully, GoodStriker seems to have been a prototype concept for the Mashins, in a way. He's got a very boxy sort of form that can switch around a bit. 
> 
> Anyways, that's enough about that. The Time Travel aspect here was mostly just to arrange for the fact that I wanted to work with the Queen more, and Drybe has barely been used, thus... I pushed Drybe into the role of GoodStriker, and put the Queen into the back half of Express. 
> 
> I'm getting a lot of mileage out of this soul transmigration gimmick.  
> \---
> 
> Day's not over yet. Next chapter is INTERMISSION: The Queen Awakens.  
> And then after that, we return to your irregularly scheduled cliffhanger resolution.


	14. INTERMISSION: The Queen Awakens.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mabayuine's perspective of events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Near Death Experience.  
> Emotion Suppression due to Low RAM.  
> Coma Like State.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 21ST, 2012.**  
  
Dust. She'd felt her body turning to dust. And then...  
  
She'd done as her Husband had instructed her- transmigrated her soul into the Guardian Stone in her corwn.  
  
Mabayuine, the Queen of Crystalia, died, saved to her own crown like a mere file to a harddrive... and...  
  
And the stone had not held enough space in it to both HOUSE her soul, as well as allow it to remain active and aware for long.  
  
And so she'd gone into a sort of power saving mode for the next few years... And then inevitably was taken along for the ride with her daughter had taken her through that solar flare wormhole at Crystalia's fall into the far future. Her daughter had taken to keeping her crown in her jacket at all times during those final days, and only invested in a safety box to store her in after arriving in the future.  
  
Had she the processing power to do anything but witness events as if in a dream, Mabayuine was sure that the crystal in her crown would have shattered from the emotional strain.  
  
As it was, the months passed by in the future, and the Queen was vaguely aware of her husband's spirit lurking about somewhere.  
  
But vaguely aware of the situation was just about all she could be, until suddenly, She felt her soul being pulled free from the crown, and placed into a Kiramei Stone.  
  
And then she was AWAKE.  
  
And she was processing several years worth of memories with her full proper mind and not as if she were in a dream state...  
  
But there was her darling daughter all grown up again.  
  
Mabayuine fretted over her once she'd shrunken down to a smaller size. Oh, this was going to be so much fun and she had so much to properly catch up on and--  
  
Battle?  
  
_**BATTLE???**_  
  
Mabayuine hadn't had a proper body to process emotions with and all of a sudden she was processing ANGER and HATE and RAGE and OH. YES. She did indeed want to battle someone just to burn that energy off.  
  
And so they fought a Jamenju- what was a Jamenju exactly?- and they destroyed it. But Jouki was here, and Esprez, and the five stones too!!   
  
Oh, how great it was to be living once again!!  
  
There was something familiar about some of these Kiramental Warriors- three of them in particular- but she chalked that up to just more of that dream-like state she'd been in for so much of her daughter's life.  
  
...Now if only that husband of hers would design to make his face known to her so she could give him a stern talking to about his lack of foresight in not grabbing her a PROPER empty Kiramei Stone to bond to in the first place.

Oh, but Oladdin could wait.  
  
When Mabayuine got a chance to confront _ **GARUZA...** _Oh. _Was she going to do more than give him a talking to._  
  
Maybe she'd take up Hakobuu's practice of sitting on him for a thousand years? No, that sounded boring after saying it.  
  
...Hmm, she'd workshop some punishments in the mean time and- Hmm? Christmas? What was Christmas? Some kind of festive Holiday?  
  
_**How FUN!**_  
  
Yes, Queen Mabayuine may not be a queen anymore, but she had _**SO MUCH**_ to catch up on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short, simple, a Look at the Queen's perspective over time. 
> 
> next chapter is SGA:06X19: “And the rain keeps falling down” (Part 2)
> 
> See ya then.


	15. SGA:06X19: “And the rain keeps falling down” (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conclusion. Harry's family holiday goes about as well as can be expected; Moltor makes his move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Homestuck Epilogues: Candy Timeline.  
> Training against a Giant Robot.  
> Meta Talk/Author Insert/Reality Questioning.  
> Shotgun blast to the chest.  
> Monstrous Transformations.  
> Dealing with a Stalker.  
> Dealing with Nightmares.  
> Non Consensual Body Modification.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 20TH, 2012.**  
  
Harry Anderson Harley-Lalonde took a steeling breath as his parent's car pulled into sight of the Egbert family home off in the Consort Kingdom of Earth C.  
  
He was going to get so much shit for fighting against Jamenju at human scale- not that he'd had much of a choice in the matter.  
  
Beside him, Sally tallied up the cars already there. "Tavvy'll be here already. There's Uncle Jake's car."  
  
"Great," Harry said, fidgiting with his Morpher. Atleast they wouldn't be too alone for this.  
  
"Aunt Vriska... Uncles Dave and Karkat..." Sally faltered- "Is that Sollux's car?"  
  
Harry looked and saw the eyesore of the red bodied, blue and mustard yellow striped sports car parked among the mess of cars.   
  
Roxy pulled in next to it, and Harry was astonished to see that Sollux Captor of all people had decided to join them this year.  
  
Car doors were slamming shut soon after.  
  
"Jaaaaade! Roxyyy!" Joan Egbert ran out of the house and hugged both of Harry and Sally's mothers. "You two are early! We weren't expecting you 'til later tonight."  
  
"We thought we'd beat the traffic rush," Jade Harley answered. "You know it's a long drive out this way."  
  
"C'mon, John and Tavvy are just getting lunch set up," Joan said, leading them inside.  
  


* * *

  
Vriska Serket and Jake English were sitting on the couch in the living room, talking loudly over the game playing on the television. It was a skating game- Harry vaguely recognized it as some Earth-B title... Something about Hawks?  
  
Sollux Captor sat there infront of the TV, a pair of red and blue lenses cyber-goggles over his eyes as he fidgited with his gamepad controller. "C'mon, asshole! Stop cheating!"  
  
"You can't even see me from back here," said one Dave Strider as he used the other controller from all the way up on the staircase.  
  
"I can tell you're cheating because there's no way your character can glitch through the walls like that!" Sollux protested.  
  
"Hey, Tony Hawk Pro Skater Six and Three Quarters is a notoriously buggy game and you can't fault me for what the game does to me," Dave didn't even really protest.  
  
"You literally just flung your character into the fucking sun off of the back of a garbage truck to respawn closer to the finish line!" Sollux accused the obvious.  
  
"To Quote Rose, Baseless Accusation!" Dave said, not even bothering to actually pitch his voice to match Rose's voice.  
  
"Oh boy," Harry whispered. "This is going to be interesting, tomorrow, isn't it?"  
  
"It's going to be interesting tonight," Sally answered as Roxy decided to interject between Sollux and Dave's fighting.  
  
"Sup, Gamers! You got room for a player three to even things out or what!?"  
  
Jake looked up from his talk with Vriska, and beamed brightly. "Harley-Lalondes! You're early!"  
  
And then he got up from his seat and barged over to give everyone a big, tight, extremely compressing bear hug of a greeting.   
  
Harry and Sally squeaked from the pressure applied, even though Roxy and Jade both laughed and hugged him back.

Yes, Indeed. this was going to be a very interesting couple of days.

* * *

[ **o < \--- STARGATE: ATLANTIS --- >o** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0K2bRdtGlg)

* * *

"Oh thank god you two are here," Tavvy exhaled in relief as he entered the Office just off of the kitchen and living room a short while later, finding Sally and Harry cooling their jets in there playing fifty two pickup. (The cards were already on the floor when they'd gotten in there and it seemed wise to clean up the mess.) "Uncles Dave and Sollux have been driving me mad with the arguments all day so far."  
  
"It's not been that bad, has it?" Sally asked, grabbing an Ace of Spades off the floor and adding it to the growing pile of cards.  
  
Tavvy fixed her a stern gaze while he adjusted his glasses- the look that said, 'It's calm now, but it was worse earlier.' Then, he actually said: "It's the first time we've all gotten together like this in years. I think they've been catching up on lost time."  
  
Sally winced. "Oof. Sorry."  
  
"It's fine, I'm just glad I've finally got someone my own age to hang out with for now," Tavvy said, glancing at the kitchen. "Making Lunch has been a nice reprieve, but, no offense to Uncel John, I can only spend so much time in there before Dad starts calling me out to try and get me to talk about Ranger Battles."  
  
"Like he hasn't before?" Harry asked.  
  
"He's been content to wait so I could," Tavvy coughed to clear his through, and changed his voice in pitch to match his father's, "'Unleash the full brunt of every adventure at once!' to everyone today and tomorrow."  
  
"Oh, Uncle Jake," Sally winces.  
  
"Hopefully he'll hold off until all of us are here," Tavvy said, glancing out into the living room. "Fortunately, it looks like he's being sated by just having your parents here to talk to now."  
"You hear when Vrissy gets here yet?" Harry asked.  
  
"She texted me about five minutes before you guys got here," Tavvy answered, "they hit some traffic, unfortunately. Apparently some drunk driver went off the road in the snow and took out a bunch of traffic lights before doing so."  
  
"How'd they manage that?" Sally asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"You know those cherry picker electrical trucks?" Tavvy asked, and Sally blinked an affirmative. "Drunk driver was driving one of those- with the back raised- and totaled through several intersections in a row before going off the road." He brought out his Morpher and showed a video that Vrissy had taken, showing the event.  
  
As the sounds of carnage echoed out, Harry remarked, "I had no idea that traffic lights were that poorly attached to the overhead poles."  
  
"Wow, me either," Sally agreed with an astonished nod.  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile, on Gilgamesh's Earth...  
  
Moltor sat kneeling in a private chamber, lit by candles, and surrounded on all sides by photographs of Necrolai's various forms.  
  
He looked upwards at the largest painting, "You died, and we did nothing." He stood. "My fair love... I will avenge you and the others slain so far by destroying some Rangers. Personally."  
  


* * *

  
It wasn't much longer before the Maryam-Lalondes showed up, Rose, Kanaya, and Vrissy.  
  
"Sup, everyone!" Vrissy spun around upon enetering the Egbert house- showing off the fancy, sorta sparkly dress she had on. "Check me out!" In fact, it looked almost like the dress itself was made of stars- bright blue on dark blue fabric.  
  
"It's a preview of what everyone can expect from me this year," Kanaya said with a smile and a wink.   
  
"Fancy wear? My god!" Jake laughed. "You must have been inspired!"  
  
"Admittedly it was by an alternate me," Kanaya said. "I saw a photo of her halloween costume from this year and just had to figure out how to replicate it. I'm sure I didn't get the same technique down, but the effect is startling similar."  
  
Vrissy spotted her teammates, and Harry, over by the office door, and quickly slipped over, sighing in relief once she was near them. "Traffic was killing us. Over an HOUR of Mom arguing with Mom back and forth, swapping stances like crazy, because they had nothing better to do than discuss the finer intricasies of 'Why did they design traffic lights like that?'"  
  
Harry gave her a sympathetic smile. "It is quite a mystery, but I'm not quite sure it's one that takes up a whole hour."  
  
"Me either," Tavvy shook his head.  
  
"Well, you're here now, and that's all that matters," Sally said, smiling. "C'mon, we kids are getting the office to camp out in tonight."  
  
"What? Seriously?" Vrissy asked. "We're not using the back yard and camping out there?"

"It's covered in snow, so no," Tavvy answered. "I already asked."  
  
"But the snow makes it better!" Vrissy protested.  
  
"That's what I said you'd say," Tavvy said, nodding, "But... the Egberts thought it was too cold and so we're staying inside."  
  
"That Sucks," Vrissy stated for the record.

"From what I've heard," Tavvy continued, "the Adults are just doing a similar 'camping in' in the living room tonight, too."  
  
"Seriously? That's at least TWO bedrooms unused tonight!" Vrissy lamented. "How lame."  
  
"Apparently they're storing all the gifts in the bedrooms, and have posted some of Uncle Dirk's security bots at the doors," Sally said.   
  
"Uncle Dirk's already been here?" Vrissy asked.  
  
"He and Uncle Karkat are out grocery shopping right now," Tavvy answered. "Apparently someone 'underestimated' the demand for cranberry sauce?"  
  
"Ew, who even likes that stuff?" Vrissy asked, grimacing.  
  
"I think June does?" Sally offered. "Rose texted me a few minutes ago about June getting out of the checkout line to get some cranberry sauce just for herself."  
  
"No offense to June, but June is weird for liking that stuff," Vrissy remarked. "And I'll say that about anyone who likes it."  
  
"It's not that bad," Tavvy defended the food stuff. "It's not the best, or my favorite, but it's not that bad."  
  
"Whatever, Tavvy," Vrissy rolled her eyes.  
  
And then Jake stomped over to them, grinning. "Alright, Kids! I've got a surprise for you all!"  
  
The four teens went pale upon hearing those words.  
  


* * *

  
Jump cut to their same expressions, except now they're all standing in the back yard as Jake English sets up a giant robot atleast as tall as the house itself.  
  
"This is all my fault, isn't it?" Harry asked, feeling a sense of impending dread.  
  
"I'll try not to hold it against you," Vrissy said, putting a hand on his shoulder and patting reassuringly.  
  
"I will," Sally said with a slight growl.  
  
"Can we not argue when we're about to fight a giant robot my Dad brought along without me even knowing?" Tavvy asked.  
  
"Now!" Jake began. "I wanna see how you kids do against a giant opponent like this one without Zords!" He gave them a serious look. "Are you in for the first round? Or do you want to sit this out and watch me do things first before you take it in the second round?"  
  
Harry and Sally glanced back at their mothers- and Harry sighed. "It's not like we have a choice in the matter either way, right?"  
  
"I'm not feeling much of a choice here," Sally admitted.  
  
Jake frowned at that. "No, seriously, if you don't want to do this, then say so now. Alright?"  
  
"Well, I'm game for fighting a giant robot," Vrissy shrugged. "You, Tavvy?"  
  
"If my team's fighting, so will I," Tavvy answered with a nod.  
  
Jake sighed. "Alright then."  
  


* * *

  
 ** __"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"__**  
  
 ** _***STOMP***_**  
  
There was shrieking.  
  
"Nice dodge!" Jake yelled.  
  
These were the noises Dirk Strider became aware of as he and Karkat Vantas returned from the grocery store.  
  
"What the hell is going on out there?" Dirk muttered.  
  
Karkat grumbled something unpublishable in polite circles.   
  
The inside of the house was empty, and unsurprisingly everyone was outside and not available to help bring everything in.  
  
The sounds of combat thudded along outside along with the roar of weaponry as the groceries were put away.  
  
Then, Dirk and Karkat went outside and saw the chaos unfolding in the snow- what was left of it.  
  
 _ **_"SHINY BREAKER!"_**_ Harry's weapon was zipping around the yard- Harry clinging onto it as he tried his best to get above the giant robot Jake had brought along. Not that it was an easy task- the Robot's tracking was keeping its front to Harry at all times.  
  
Meanwhile, the three Overdrives were blasting away at it from the ground level- not dealing much damage.  
  
The Adults, save for Jake who was further away shouting out improvised tips for getting around the giant machine, were all gathered on the porch watching the battle and commenting amongst themselves. Well, save for Sollux, who had his vision goggles off and headphones over his ears.  
  
"What have we missed?" Dirk asked, gazing at the scene, and interjecting himself into the conversation.   
  
"Just Jake teaching the kids how to take on a giant enemy when you're small," Dave answered.   
  
"That thing's as big as the house and nowhere near as small as I was told it was going to be," Dirk stated, and then. "Hey, wait, is that one of my old Lord English Battle Practice Bots!?"  
  
"We need to know how good our kids are at fighting if we're going to let them keep doing this," Jade said, frowning. "Roxy and I have been divided on this since they started. And while we've allowed it so far it's..."  
  
"We just need to know we're not leaving them to do risky things," Roxy added. "Like Harry fighting a giant monster on his own outside of his zord or without any backup. Such a dumb idea."  
  
"You mean that Motorboat Jamenju from the other day?" Dirk asked.   
  
"Yeah? I think that's what it was called," Roxy said with a nod.  
  
"Well that wasn't really Harry's fault as far as I saw it," Dirk said.  
  
Almost everyone turned to look at Dirk as he said that- Sollux didn't even react.   
  
"You saw the fight?" Dave asked.

"Of course I saw the fight," Dirk answered, a little irate. "I had front row seats to the splash zone!" He grimaced and muttered to himself, _"Oh Damn, they got me to say it."_  
  
"Splash zone...?" Joan asked, confused.  
  
"Yes, it was raining and that Jamenju was making giant splashes of water every time it jumped through the ground or a building," Dirk answered. "Does that robot do that?"  
  
"Uhhh..." Dave trailed off. "Why the hell are we even doing this 'training' thing for if Dirk saw Harry's fight?"  
  
"No, I don't think it does," Dirk answered his own question, and then he strode out onto the battlefield. "Kids, back off and let a pro show you how it's done."  
  
The rangers did such, ending their attacks on the robot and backing away as Dirk casually walked up to the robot.  
  
"Uh, Dirk?" Jake began. "What are you...?"  
  
And then Dirk moved with such speeds that it was hard to see him actually be anywhere.  
  
 ** _Flash- WHAM- CLINK- SLAM!!!_**  
  
And then Dirk literally proceeded to blitz rush the old training robot to the ground, burring it into a massive pile of barely remaining snow.  
  
"Behold," Dirk said, standing ontop of the robot's head and shoulder's like it was just a rock formation. "A reenactment of the other day, wouldn't you agree, Harry?"  
  
Harry nodded. "Yeah, I'd say so."  
  
"You see the issue with giants like this is their speed," Dirk continued. "Normally, they don't move that fast unless they have something propelling them."   
It was clear he wasn't talking to the kids directly with the way he was looking over at the adults in the group.  
  
"Harry- your issue the other day was that you were outclassed in speed and there's nothing wrong with that. Gigant Driller can be Slow against a speedy enemy like that Jamenju. The solution in cases like those is to bring in someone faster than the fast ones, not to train a slower attacking thing to be fast against slower ones."   
  
Jake seemed to laugh, embarrassed at that line in particular. "Oh, I totally didn't even think about the speed thing. That was a goof on my part. A real blunder, alright."  
  
Dirk gave the man a pleading look for him to go silent for just a minute, because 'teaching moment,' and Jake nodded, accepting, and miming locking away his lips.  
  
Dirk continued, looking to Harry properly, "You did the best that you could in that situation considering the outclassing of speed that Jamenju had against you. In the end, you did what you had to do, and held out until the Speedster needed to beat it arrived on the scene. Got it?"  
  
"Understood," Harry nodded.  
  
Dirk pointed to Sally, "Tell me, Overdrive Red, what was your strategy for this fake monster?"  
  
"If I could have had my full team and summoned my Zords, I would have," Sally answered. "But I don't have my full team and we were told not to summon any Zords. So I came up with the strategy of having Harry fly up behind and above it to try and take it down."  
  
"In a real scenario those are valid conditions that could be met, and it's a smart plan," Dirk paused. "But what if you could have summoned your Zords with who was here?"  
  
"Then I'd say we go for the zords, and combine the Auxiliaries into the Dual Drive, and we'd fight alongside Gigant Driller to beat it senseless, Sir," Sally answered.   
  
"Why Dual Drive?" Dirk asked.  
  
"Dual Drive only properly requires one pilot, but can function just as easily with three or five," Sally answered.  
  
"Good," Dirk nodded. "You kids can head back inside now and power down."  
  
With a nod, the kids did so, demorphing, and heading back into the house. Evidently Sollux decided he was going to head inside too, plopping his goggles back down over his eyes and waltzing in after them.  
  
Dirk dismounted the robot with a flash step- and left it to Jake to clean up as he headed over to the other adults. "So, whose idea was this exactly? Because I know Jake doesn't reactivate THAT giant robot model unless someone puts him up to it."  
  
Roxy sighed, "Mine, Dirk."  
  
"Why?" Dirk asked.  
  
"Because one of my kids fought a giant monster without being inside a giant robot!" Roxy protested. "That's not safe and it almost got him killed! He didn't call for backup-"  
  
"He tried, and got stopped before he could follow through," Dirk interjected. "Could he have called for the Weapon Mashin before it got to that point? Sure, but he was under pressure to get to fighting it as soon as possible that it might as well have been outside of his control from the get go. The simple fact of the matter is they weren't able to meet the thing in the speed department to start with. So they had to find a way TO meet its speed. And they did."  
  
"But they were still throwing themselves into danger!" Roxy began.  
  
"And that's as if we never did?" Dirk asked. "Hell, that's acting as if some of us weren't still risking our lives when Jane was still around?" He looked at Karkat, who nodded at that.  
  
Everyone grimaced a bit at that.  
  
"Yeah," Dave sighed. "He's right on that. I told you guys this was a bad idea."  
  
"Not like you stopped it," Dirk pointed out.  
  
"It was one of your robots! I thought you were in on it!" Dave pointed out.  
  
Dirk winced, and not just from Dave's remark. "Okay, yeah, that's a good point."  
  
Potentials of timelines potentials swirled around Dirk in the moment, it felt like reality was preparing itself for something... Something time travel-y.  
  
"Dirk, our kids are important to us-" Roxy began.  
  
"I understand that," Dirk said. "But come on, surprising the kids like that? You're just asking for someone to come along and turn that thing into a real monster trying to kill them instead of train them."  
  
Which was why he removed several key components from the Robot when disabling it. His design to dismantle, after all.   
  
Reality was shifting slightly again, settling down as he affirmed the prevention of a few bad ends. Nobody needed another Enter.  
  
Roxy seemed admonished by the thought- apparently not having thought of that. Good grief, some parents just took protecting their kids too far in the wrong directions.  
  
"The way I see it, if Harry wasn't there to distract that Jamenju for as long as he did, it would have caused far, far, FAR too much damage to Sardines," Dirk said. "The whole town might have been leveled. As it is, it's thanks to the Seers and Kiramagers figuring out when the attack was going to happen that the place was able to be evacuated as much as it was before everything went down."  
  
And wasn't the Traveler playing a tight game of chance there with that? The Seers starting to fail in their predictions and yet people were still being mostly evacuated to safety? No loss of life period? It seemed incredulous on the surface that the worst of everything that was happening was just property damage. On Earth C, a strange oddity. Elsewhere in the Galaxy??? In the universe???  
  
Pegasus alone had suffered so many deaths before in the past, so why was the Traveler shying away from it now? Something had changed in their modus opperandi,   
  
Dirk figured, but he couldn't dare guess what.  
  
Iyo Kodera was the first real casualty of this entire war as far as Dirk was aware. The first confirmed one, but even then she was... what? Shoved onto a data card waiting a new body to be cloned into existence for her to get into?  
  
It seemed like a loophole flaunt. Like she should have died, but didn't. Not technically. And then there was them actually letting June punch them in the face.   
  
Wait. What?  
  
Dirk rechecked the events of the universe around him and saw the Traveler getting punched in the nose by June Egbert in a grocery store. How'd he miss that happening? Oh, he saw now, she'd done the deed when he himself had been distracted pondering over which was the better deal on frozen cinamon rolls not too long ago.  
  
What insanity was even going on here? Explaining the whole Ridley situation? What the fuck were they thinking now? That went so far beyond their previous non intervention by a mile...  
  
And was it just him or did the timeline seem to be vaguely snapping into alignment for future events already as if they'd already happened even though they hadn't--   
  
OH. He saw the fact of it now. Parallel events that were getting focused on at different points in time. Devious. But it made sense on a simple sort of work flow level of-  
  
"Yo, Dirk, Earth C to Dirk," Dave snapped his fingers. "Everyone's gone inside already. You coming back in or staying out here in the cold?"  
  
Dirk shook his head. "Sorry, got lost in thought."  
  
"I figured when you started stonewalling Roxy like that," Dave gave a slight smirk. "Nice way of getting the last word in, I guess, but still. She seemed a little ticked off."  
  
"I'll make sure I apologize later," Dirk sighed, looking around. Jake had already dismantled the robot and gone inside. "I guess I zoned out more than I thought I did."  
  
"What were you so distracted by anyways?" Dave asked as the two Striders headed inside. "More weird-ass meta-talk stuff or...?"  
  
"I know you don't get the meta stuff," Dirk answered, shrugging off his coat and throwing it onto a coat rack next to the laundry machines. "But kinda? I got distracted seeing someone get punched in the face and I'm trying to figure out what their game even is for all of this."  
  
"...Someone has a game when they let themselves get punched in the face?" Dave asked.  
  
"It's a long story, but I think so?" Dirk answered. "It wasn't just the punch, but... I don't know, Dave. It's insane to think about but I swear they're preparing for the worst possible outcomes and are meddling directly to prevent them from happening."  
  
"Well, isn't that what Seers do?" Dave asked.

Dirk froze in positioning, but not by temperature. Suddenly he laughed as he understood what had changed. The Seers had been the PREVIOUS method of directing change vectors. Still were. But... something was unstable about the timeline that was going to be nullifying their effectiveness, and so the methodology of making changes had to change as well.  
  
Dave gave him a weird look for the laughing, and Dirk just smiled.  
  
"The Seers, of course," Dirk said. "I think I get it now."  
  
"Whatever, man." Dave shook his head. "No offense, but you've gotten weird since you went and did that whole spirit monk journey thing."  
  
"I'd rather be weird than the asshole I was on track to be," Dirk answered. "Trust me, that guy just doesn't know what he's doing. Me? I think I've got a slightly better perspective- one good enough to realize that was the completely ass backwards direction to be heading in, even if it's not perfect."  
  
The one thing Dirk had come to realize was that perfection was impossible. Nobody could write the perfect story. There had to be flaws- failures- somewhere. The Traveler was probably making a big mistake right now by doing all this self-insert stuff, but they were going to let it ride, it seemed like... Or maybe it was that they felt they couldn't do anything but roll with it?  
  
Dirk realized he'd been painting in the meta-narrative for a moment, and shook it off, saying, "Either way. I think we're all better off here, than there."   
  
"Yeah," Dave swallowed, not quite sure how to respond to that. "Fair enough, man. Fair enough."

* * *

Late that night, after dinner- the four kids lay sprawled out in camping grade sleeping bags in the office, staring up at a star painted ceiling.  
  
"So. Today was weird, right?" Sally asked. "That wasn't just me?"  
  
"So weird," Harry agreed. "What was up with Uncle Dirk jumping in like that anyways?"  
  
"No idea," Vrissy frowned, and then sat up, to look out the window into the back yard. "Speaking of Uncle Dirk, he's out there now."  
  
"Really?" Tavvy sat up as well. "I wonder what he's doing?"  
  
Harry and Sally sat up, and peered out the window with their friends.   
  
"It looks like he's talking to someone?" Sally frowned. "Who's that in the cloak?"  
  
"Weird, they're talking but I can't hear them saying anything," Harry said. "It's like they're muted."  
  


* * *

  
"So, wanna explain what was up with me doing your dirty work to end that whole sequence like that?" Dirk asked, gazing up at the stars.  
  
"I didn't make you do that," the Traveler answered, sitting on the tree-swing and rocking gently back and forth in the cold. "You did it on your own. I'm Just struggling to get this timeline pinned down right. Circumstantially simultaneous events are hard to-"  
  
"Bull and shit," Dirk interjected. "I didn't realize it 'til later, but you shoved that thought of you getting punched out at me when I first had it so I'd dig at it to figure out what it was. And I felt you trying to shuffle things around in the background twice over."  
  
"I'm not omnipotent," The Traveler answered, looking at Dirk with a frown on their face. "I'm not a god. I just chronicle-"  
  
"Bull shit, again," Dirk said. "You do more than that."  
  
"And I authorize a few events when needed," The Traveler answered. "Otherwise, I try to leave things be."  
  
"This feels far too messy for my liking," Dirk said, glancing at them. "What the hell are you even doing right now? You set me up to stop that fight and prune some timeline potentials. Why?"  
  
"Choice and Consequence," The Traveler repeated. "The theme."  
  
"So?" Dirk asked. "This isn't some meta interlude people can just brush off as non canon if they don't want to like it. You're actively meddling far too much in this act. Why!?"  
  
"Because I'm scared that if I don't-" they stopped suddenly. "I'm scared."  
  
"Aren't we all," Dirk answered. "What are you scared of?"  
  
"Take a wild guess, Dirk Strider," the Traveler answered. "Surface life is horrible right now. I'd much rather be anywhere else, and I feel like... at the very least if things go bad on the outside I can ensure a part of me survives on in this world-line. Even if I suddenly disconnect and lose all awareness of that outside- at least I'll be here to enjoy the fruits of that labor, right?"  
  
"So you're following the same path the other me did?" Dirk asked. "Taking control of the narrative just to-- to-- What? 'Preserve yourself'?"  
  
The Traveler was silent for a few moments, gazing upwards at the night sky. "I guess I'm being selfish, yeah. I'm trying to fix mistakes I've done here. Things I haven't done right. I can't go back and rewrite everything. I won't meddle that badly. I can't. I refuse to. There's a narrative through line that needs to be adhered to. Fixed points I can't erase."  
  
"So why not just keep to the track you followed before and not intervene directly?" Dirk asked.  
  
 _"Because I'm owning UP_ to my choices here, Dirk," The Traveler answered, orange eyes meeting orange eyes. "I'm running away from one world that seems fit to target people at random for no reason, to another that I've done some things to and screwed them up in so I'm not looking for forgiveness or any shit like that. If people want to hate me and punch me out like June did, I'll live with that. **_I'm NOT a god._** I'm not some all knowing person who's controlling these events! I don't _**LIKE**_ the thought of having that kind of power. It scares me. I'm scared that if I do have that kind of power over THIS world, what's stopping me from subconsciously messing up my own world-line? What's stopping me from- _**Fuck!**_ "   
  
They stood up, and threw their hands under their hood, messing with their hair underneath, trying to control their breathing.  
  
Dirk sighed, but didn't move from his spot.  
  
The Traveler started ranting again, " ** _I hate it! I hate this responsibility_**! I've had far too many people in my life suggest I've had this kind of power- that everything's just a dream! And since I'm the only one aware of it then that implies that I'm the dreamer and I HATE THAT! Because WHY would I trap myself in this living nightmare for!?"  
  
"I dunno," Dirk asked, "why would the other me go and ruin the lives of everyone he knew just to make himself out to be the villain?"  
  
"That's the fucking difference here, Dirk!" The Traveler looked at him, eyes swirling colors too rapidly to take note. "I don't know what my own reality is- I don't know if I control it or if someone else does and I'm just stuck along for the ride! I don't want that power either way! I don't want to control a whole reality, or multiverse, or ANYTHING! I'm not that kind of person! I hate it! I hate people thinking that I do these kinds of things out of ego! I hate it! I hate it and I need people to know that I don't LIKE that kind of power or responsibility! I don't want recognition! I just want to ** _LIVE MY LIFE IN PEACE, DAMN IT!"_** They nearly shouted- but somehow, the sound didn't carry beyond Dirk's ears.  
  
Their hands fell back from their hair, knocking the hood away as they briefly bounced against their shoulders and then fell down to their sides.   
  
"Feel better now?" Dirk asked.  
  
"Little bit, yeah," they sighed. "I'm tired, Dirk. I'm so fucking tired of this bullshit reality I live in. Anywhere's better than this- even the horribly fucked up worlds. Because at least there I have an understanding of how the mechanics work."  
  
"Seems a bit hypocritical if you ask me," Dirk said, "considering how you've managed this world."  
  
"That's why I'm owning up to it," they said. "Some things I could change for the better, others I couldn't. Fixed points. This thing with June's old Ninja team is on me for letting it happen the way it has. At the very least I have to fix that. That's my mistake. I cannot undo. Only mend."  
  
Dirk stepped over across the yard, and then sat down on the ground next to the swing. "Well, kid, if you ask me, we're all in way over our heads with this meta stuff. But you sound like you're in the midst of one hell of an identity crisis."  
  
"Like the eyes weren't enough of a dead giveaway?" They asked, motioning at their eyes, which had settled on... teal and orange for the moment. "I can't even manifest a stable author avatar. Some Author I am."  
  
Dirk felt a deluge of thoughts wash away from the Traveler across the narrative- not quite committed to word, but things they were thinking regardless. Things they could potentially say, but wasn't wanting to face.  
  
"Well, by your own admission," Dirk said, carefully choosing his words to not step on any of those landmines thrown his way. "You're NOT an Author. A Chronicler, a Historian. Whatever. You have some final authority on what gets shown to the outside world, but it's not everything that happens."  
  
"Reaffirmation of my own thoughts doesn't help, Dirk," they scowled, sitting down on the swing again.  
  
"I'm just saying, if that's your perspective on yourself, then the people implying you've got any kind of control over your own native reality are idiots," Dirk said. "That kind of depersonalizing shit hurts people who aren't destined for it. Or aren't seeking it for themselves." He motioned at himself there. "Prince of Heart, Destroyer of Souls." He motioned at the Traveler, "Mage of Light... I don't have a witty translation."  
  
They scoffed. "Calliope would have a better idea if I wasn't deliberately avoiding her for her connection to the Corpse Stealer."  
  
"Probably," Dirk shrugged. "What's she even up to anyways?"  
  
"I'm not thinking about it lest I draw her attention towards me," they admitted. "She already freaked out over... shit. Damn it. Now I know. Terezi's with her. Atleast they're keeping to themselves tonight."  
  
"She freaked out over what she saw of the..." Dirk paused. "You know, I'd rather not think about those two damned timelines any more than you would."  
  
"Fucking hell, I haven't even caught up on the latest updates," The Traveler admitted, head being placed in hands, covering their eyes. "Gaaah. I heard something about an exploding house but I'm afraid to look at this point lest I actually try to do something that accidentally hits too close to home."  
  
"Just don't explode any houses?" Dirk offered.  
  
"This is currently a Power Rangers adaptation of a Super Sentai series," The Traveler reminded him. "Buildings have a tendency to EXPLODE in this genre!"  
  
Dirk considered the obvious. "Yeah, they really do, don't they?'  
  


* * *

  
  
It wasn't too much longer before the cloaked stranger and Dirk said their goodbyes, and the cloaked figure linked away with their Relto Book.  
  
"Well, that was kind of weird to watch, considering we didn't hear a thing they said," Tavvy stated the obvious.  
  
"Let's just get back to bed," Harry yawned. "We've got a long morning ahead of us."  
  
"More like a long day," Vrissy offered.  
  
As those three climbed back into their sleeping bags, Sally gazed out the window as Dirk stared up at the stars for a moment longer, then headed back inside.  
  
"What Was that all about?" She asked herself, then went back to bed.

* * *

 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 21ST, 2012.**  
  
Sally found Harry sitting out on the back porch in the early hours of the morning as the sun started to rise.  
  
His ears twitched as she stepped out behind her. "Hey," he greeted, quietly.  
  
"Mornin'," She returned, sitting down next to her brother. "Couldn't sleep again?"  
  
"Not nightmares," Harry answered. "But yeah. Just. Wondering what today will bring." He then lifted his morpher clad wrist. "Also, I got a text and went out here to answer it without waking anyone up."  
  
"Ah? Who's texting you at this hour?" Sally asked, teasing.  
  
"Mei," Harry answered. "She wanted to check my experiences against something she wasn't sure if she was remembering or making up."  
  
"Ah, right," Sally nodded. "The whole amnesia thing," she frowned. "So, what was the consensus?"  
  
"Dunno," Harry shrugged. "She just said, 'Oh, interesting' and then said she was going back to bed to think on it."  
  
Sally snorted. "Well, that's a response, alright."  
  
"Yeah," Harry smiled. "It was."  
  


* * *

  
Breakfast sizzled along as the kitchen became a flury of activity of cooking.  
  
Tavros "Tavvy" English (nee Crocker) worked to mix up frosting for the Cinnamon rolls as said rolls baked in the oven.  
  
It was a chaotic morning, but a good morning.  
  
No need to worry about other things or anything else. Just. Food. Food Prep.  
  
It was a good way to not have to think about anything else that might happen in the day, and if there was anything his Mother had given him that was good in his life (besides his own life itself, that was), it was cooking as a distraction from the world's woes.  
  
But in all honesty, it was a gift given in the abstract. He'd taken up the skill of his own accord because Mother Dearest had been too focused on running the company (and being a rather unpleasant person to boot) to even teach him anything.  
  
Maybe he'd reach out and find the Jane Egbert of the timeline that Earth C had been merged into? He heard she was a rather accomplished traveling chef, after all.   
  
Maybe he'd ask Uncle Dirk to track her down and make an offer? That may be asking a bit much of the man, though.  
  


* * *

  
Present opening was a strange affair this year, Vriska "Vrissy" Maryam-Lalonde mused as she shook at a festively patterned foil wrapped box.  
  
Everyone had conspired and told them not to use their morphers to cheat and peek inside. But HONESTLY? The thought had never even crossed her mind and she was kind of insulted that anyone would even think she'd use her MORPHER'S TRACKING AND SCANNING FUNCTIONS to even DARE peek at the contents of ANY of her gifts.  
  
Vrissy was too good at guessing what was inside the festively wrapped boxes anyways, she didn't need the cheat to get ahead of the game.  
  


* * *

  
Lunch time was rolling around when Vriska shouted from outside about party crashers.  
  
And so everyone went outside, and sure enough, there was Moltor and some lava themed minions melting the snow away outside in the front yard.  
  
Needless to say, the confrontation went a little something like this:  
  
"Rangers! Today is the day I'll kill you all!" Moltor declared his intent.  
  
And then Jade Harley snapped out her hunting rifle from her sylladex and fired a blast off from her hip that caught Moltor clear in the chest and sent him flying across the yard into the nearest tree that was not the one in the front yard, but rather, the tree in the yard across the street.  
  
Moltor hit it with a smack- a crack- and several falling tree branches.

The Lava Minions quickly rushed to his side and fretted over him.  
  
 _"Can we Not have **ONE FUCKING DAY!?"**_ Jade shouted. "Without someone doing something that requires a powered intervention!?"  
  
Needless to say- that was when a train whistle cut through the air, and Mashin Jouki blew down the street- when it vanished, Garuza was kneeling next to Moltor, examining the magma spewing wound from the general's chest.  
  
"Garuza!" Harry and Sally shouted at the same time.  
  
"My my," Garuza didn't even look up. "Moltor you idiot. Never confront the families of Rangers who have super powers! Especially not on holidays."  
  
"I... just want..." Moltor breathed out, heavily. "Revenge!"  
  
"Yes, you sure do," Garuza took out a Monstone crystal, and shoved it into the bleeding wound with a surge of Jamental energy.   
  
Moltor screamed- and the Rangers activated their morphers.  
  
 _ **"OVERDRIVE ACCELERATE!"/"KIRAMEI CHANGE!"**_  
  
"Come, Rangers!" Garuza said, standing up to full height. "Let us duel in the skies while Moltor commits to his folley of an attack on the ground."  
  
He snapped his fingers, and Jouki blew by again- no doubt Garuza leaped onboard because the thing transformed into its Smog formation a moment later.  
  
"REVEEEEEENGEEEEE!" Moltor shouted- glowing with dark energy as Jamental tendrils snapped out and infected the lava minions.  
  
"Harry, go deal with Garuza," Sally said. "Tavvy, Vrissy, and I can handle Moltor."  
  
"Are you sure?" Harry asked.  
  
"They won't be alone," Dirk said, stepping up with the Overdrive teens. "Go deal with Garuza."  
  
"Alright," Harry nodded, then tapped his Morpher. __"MASHIN DRIJAN!"__  
  


* * *

  
Nigh simultaneously, two battles began on Earth C. In one place, Kiramagein and Zabyun Express formed to deal with the Jamenju...  
  
And Gigant Driller appeared on the scene in the Consort Kingdom to confront the bastard traitor, Garuza. But it wasn't just Harry in his Mecha alone- oh, no, he summoned Rolland, Duston, and Mazellan to the fight as well.  
  
"Well well, Kiramei Silver," Garuza taunted as he saw the triple armed Megazord across from him. "I wasn't sure whether you'd come and fight me or not!"

"We'll see about that, Garuza," Harry said, preparing for battle.  
  
Gigant Driller marched on ahead as Smog Jouki charged forwards.  
  


* * *

  
"RAAAAAH!" Moltor and his empowered minions charged the whole familiy of God Tiers and their associated badass relatives.  
  
Sally's drive lance speared out- Tavvy's Water cannon fired off- Vrissy's air jet howled- the Thief of Light threw her dice- and The Prince of Heart drew his sword. All to keep the molten general at a distance from the surely flamable house.  
  
...And two Heirs of Breath added to the gale, similarly throwing minions about and into eachother.  
  
A Knight of Time and a Knight of Blood cut down the lava minions.  
  
The Seer of Light and Sylph of Space, together with the Rogue of Void and Witch of Space- similarly had success taking out monsters.  
  
The Page of Hope summoned wings of hope energy to slam through the minions.  
  
...The Mage of Doom just sat back on the porch and watched as the show unfold as he munched on some Christmas themed cookies.   
  


* * *

  
"BANGER!" Rolland shouted- slamming down on Jouki's head- the Mashin roared- and spun around to lash out with the chainsaw tail.  
  
Harry jumped backwards- Mazellan fired from the right shoulder.  
  
The chainsaw burst through those shots with ease, but Garuza laughed- enjoying the thrill of the fight.  
  
"You know!" Garuza laughed, "When I discovered what Moltor was planning, I thought I'd see how far he got before intervening! Not even a minute before he was nearly slain!"   
  
"My Mom's are both crack shot sharp shooters!" Harry shouted, swinging a drill forwards.  
  
"Not sharp enough to aim for the head!" Garuza countered. "BURN BLACKER!"  
  
The fire burst of dark purple flames roared out- and Duston roared to life in turn from Driller's left shoulder- sucking in the flames and then- _ **"TAKE THIS, YOU BLOW HARD, DUUUUSSSS!"** _-He reversed the suction and sent the flames flying right back at Jouki.  
  
"What the-!?" Garuza shouted- before being forced to take Jouki's own attack to the face.  
  


* * *

  
Moltor looked around in rage as his minions were being slowly pushed back and away. They weren't making progress. They weren't getting their REVENGE!  
  
"YOU'LL. ALL. DIE!!!" He shouted.

"No," Dirk said as Vriska rolled a certain combination on her dice. "I'm pretty sure that's you."  
  
Suddenly, dark blue chains appeared, binding Moltor to the ground by each limb.   
  
"WHAT- THE--!?" He struggled against the binds- the Monstone in his chest glowing brightly.  
  
"Defender Vest!" Sally called out, teleporting on the vest and summoning the drill-mixer blaster into hand. Tavvy and Vrissy fell behind her to support her as she lined up the drill shot. "ONE DRILL BLAST!!" She shouted- borrowing her brother's weapon's special attack name.  
  
Needless to say, Moltor couldn't do anything but take the strike dead on through the wound in his chest, filled already with the Monstone crystal.  
  
The crystal exploded- Moltor went flying and smashed into that same tree again- demolishing it.  
  
Then, MOLTOR exploded, finishing the job.  
  
\---

* * *

  
Garuza sneered as Jouki roared in pain of taking his own attack. "Well. Fine then. It's time I bow out." He threw a burst of Jamental down towards the smoking crater that Moltor had been in moments ago. _**"DARK FUSION!"**_  
  
The Jamental energy began stitching Moltor's body fragments together, at the same time that tendrils lashed out again, grabbing the lava minions, and dragging them bodily into the epicenter of a sudden growth spurt.  
  
Gigant Driller turned on the spot as Moltor finished growing to giant size.  
  
He was... very obviously corrupted by the Monstone, what with Crystal Shards growing out of various limbs and giant molten wings sprouting from his back with the faces of the lava minions clearly painfully twisted into place to make such a feature possible.  
  
"Oh that's just not fair!" Harry said, glancing at Garuza, but swearing again as the Purple-Black Mashin Train escaped through a portal.  
  
"STOOOONEEE!" The corrupted Moltor roared- and charged at Gigant Driller.  
  
"TAKE ZAT!" Mazellan shouted- firing off at the Molten Monstronsity, and not doing much to damage it.  
  


* * *

  
"Kids, call for your zords," Dirk advised.  
  
"We'll go for Dual Drive-" Sally started.  
  
"No, not all of them," Dirk said. "Just Crane, Mixer, and Jet."  
  
"Why?" Vrissy asked.  
  
Moltor spread his wings and took into the air- avoiding a punch from Gigant Driller.  
  
"That'd be why," Dirk stated witha dry drawl. "Driller needs to fly."  
  
"But the Jet doesn't combine with Driller?" Vrissy asked. "How do we-?"  
  
"Ah," Sally chuckled nervously, interjecting across Vrissy's question. "I may have asked Doctor Kae to modify our zords a bit?"  
  
"Then let's summon the things already and take that thing down before it melts the entire countryside!" Tavvy stated the urgency for the record.  
  


* * *

  
Moltor circled over head- blasting down lava shots that Gigant Driller was forced to deflect or redirect with the equipped weapon Mashin.  
  
"Bwaah! Laba hurts!" Rolland complained, smacking a molten rock away- he sounded like he'd burnt his tongue on something hot, not that he had a tongue in that form, but still.  
  
Cue the sound of a teleport- and laser shots firing off- smashing into Moltor's sides.  
  
He roared- tumbled through the air, and crashed into a nearby, undeveloped hillside.  
  
"What the...?" Harry turned and looked, and saw the Overdrive Jet Zord roaring into view, with the Crane and Mixer zords detaching from underneath its wings towards the ground below.  
  
"Harry!" Sally's voice radioed into Harry's ears. "We're going to combine!"  
  
"Please tell me it's not with glue this time," Harry answered with mixed levels of enthusiasm.  
  
"Just jump onto Tavvy and Vrissy's zords, like shoes, and we'll handle the rest," Sally said.  
  
"Sounds fine by me!" Harry answered, and had Gigant Driller take off at a run for the green and purple zords.   
  
_**_"MASHIN GATTAI!"_**_  
  
Inside the purple Drive Crane zord, Vrissy spun the wheel, turning her zord around. Conversely, inside the green Drive Mixer zord, Tavvy kept going on straight ahead.  
  
With the mixer zord technically attaching in reverse to how it normally applied to the Drivemax Ultrazord, and the Crane Zord attaching normally- Gigant Driller spun around on the spot, locking onto Moltor, who was taking into the air again.  
  
"You won't get away this time!" Sally declared- splitting the front nose off of the Jet Zord and leaving the bulk of the body to attach onto Gigant Driller's back like it normally would with the Drivemax Ultrazord. Similarly, the front chest plate attached to Driller's front, and the visor briefly flipped down.  
  
"Wait what-" Harry said before the head-helmet nose piece of the Jet Zord lowered over his face.  
  
Then, he got SUPER enhanced vision including readouts for fuel and energy reserves for the Jet.  
  
"Complete!" Sally shouted. "DRIVEMAX ULTRA-DRILLER!"  
  
 _ **_"DRIVEMAX ULTRA DRILLER!"_**_  
  
"What a Wonder Combo!" Harry said, then roared- Kicking off of the ground and firing off the jets- "WONDER SKYYYYYYYYY!"  
  
The, ahhem, Drivemax Ultra Driller took into the sky, hurtling after Moltor.  
  
"Ah! We're balanzed!" Mazellan laughed. "TWO MIXERZ!!"  
  
"That are both green, even" Tavvy remarked.  
  
"We can wonder about the design coincidences later!" Vrissy said, a savage grin under her helmet. "Let's wrap this up!"   
  
"Let's!" Harry kicked out with the right leg- and from behind, the Crane arm shot forth its head on a tight, steel made rope that wrapped around Motor's legs, and dragged him out of the air in a tumble.  
  
Moltor tried to fire lava bursts at them- but Duston rebuffed them with a reverse suction blow- throwing them right back into his snarling face.  
  
"NYRRAAAGGHHHRHH!" he shouted.  
  
"DUAL MIX!" Tavvy and Mazellan shouted- both concrete mixers firing off hardening materials at the Molten Monster- actually hardening him over in several directions at once- including both wings.  
  
"ROLLAND!" Harry shouted- "IGNITIOOOOOOON!" The Hammer Mashin transformed from orange to burning crimson red as Harry swung and threw Rolland through the air- smashing through the now hardened over wings.  
  
Moltor fell towards the ground- and Vrissy retracted the crane head, pulling them in faster towards a conclusion.  
  
"PHOENIX DRIVE GIGANT CRASH!" Harry shouted- catching Rolland and igniting the entire Ultrazord combination aflame with the power of the Phoenix Blaster on the chest.  
  
Harry's drill hand pushed forwards and they plowed through Moltor- exploding him on the spot in the air- before they swooped upwards and posed above the explosion, dramatically.  
  
 _ **_"CHECKMAGE!"_**_  
  


* * *

  
Kurantula's staff fell into the water as he watched Moltor meet his end. "The... They... They actually..."  
  
Garuza stormed into the base, splashing through the water without a care in the world, as he guessed, "They defeated him, didn't they? Even with my gift?"  
  
"They Cheated and Combined their zords across teams!!" Kurantula shouted.  
  
"Oh? They can do that now too, hm?" Garuza asked, sounding not surprised at all.  
  
Then, he turned and left without another word.  
  
Kurantula shuddered. "Scarry. Garuza's so freakin' scarry."  
  


* * *

  
"Kids, can we talk for a minute?" Jade asked, knocking on the open door to the office, Roxy was by her side.  
  
The four kids, three Overdrives and one Kiramager, sat around with Duston and Mazellan floating over their shoulders. They'd been playing an actual card game this time that wasn't picking up someone else's failed attempt at 52 pick up.  
  
"About what?" Harry asked, looking up from his hand of cards.  
  
"Well, for starters, we're un grounding you, Harry," Roxy gave an apologetic smile.  
  
"Ah, one of these conversations," Vrissy said, a knowing tone of voice. "Should Tavvy and I go somewhere else for a minute?"  
  
"No, stay," Jade said. "We won't be long."

"Harry, Sally," Roxy started. "You know that we've had a bit of a hard time really deciding what we were feeling about you two being Rangers, but if there's anything today's shown us, you not being Rangers won't keep you safe."  
  
"It was kind of silly to think that, anyways," Jade said, a knowing look in her eyes. "We're God Tiers. Public Figures in our own right. It'd just be a matter of time before someone got the 'smart' idea to try and use you against us eventually."  
  
Roxy sighed, "Knowing how Jane was acting, it might've even been her first."  
  
Tavvy grimaced at that, and said, "Yeah. She wasn't being a very nice person at all."  
  
Jade gave them all a sympathetic smile, and said, "Still, Roxy and I talked it out, and we'd both rather you kids be able to protect yourselves than not. Even if the situation gets really out of hand... you're probably ten times safer in the suits than out."  
  
"We'll worry like hell every time you go out," Roxy added. "Just knowing you're going out there and fighting like that..."  
  
"You kids know how to defend yourselves," Jade said. "So. We're not going to try holding you back for doing the best you can."  
  
"Thanks, Moms," Harry said, giving a small smile. "That means a lot to me."   
  
"Yeah," Sally nodded in agreement of that. "It really does."  
  
Roxy looked relieved to hear that, and Jade just gave them a warm smile. "Well, we'll let you get back to your game now."  
  
And with that, she turned to leave, carefully snatching one of Roxy's free hands and taking her with her back into the living room.  
  
The kids watched them go for a moment, then, Mazellan asked, "I feel like we mizzed zomething?"  
  
"Don't worry about it, Dus," Duston said quietly. "Pretty sure that wasn't meant for us, there."  
  
And then Sally's morpher chimed, and she flipped it open. "Hello?"  
  
 _"You soloed Moltor without me!?"_ June Egbert shout-whispered into her Morpher from the other end.  
  
"We didn't have much of a choice," Sally winced. "Sorry. It all happened so fast."  
  
 _"I knooow."_ June sighed, hanging her head. _"Still, that wasn't what I was expecting from today."_  
  
"Yeah, I can understand that," Sally said. "So, how's your holiday party going?"  
  
 _"Oh, you know, the usual. Except this year we had an intermission to watch the Kiramagers fighting off a Gold themed Jamenju at the same time you guys were fighting Moltor Of All Generals!!"_ June's answer shocked everyone, and Harry grabbed at his Sister's Morpher to ask:  
  
"My team did What!?"

* * *

"Well, it's getting late," Serara said as the sun began to set on Diaspora, and the Holiday gathering party at Roxy and Alec Egbert's house began to wind down. "I think I'll be heading home."  
  
Upon hearing those words, Cassandra Fraiser's head snapped upwards to attention.  
  
"Not alone you're not," She said firmly.  
  
Serara frowned, then nodded, bowing to a Seer's wisdom. "Alright."  
  
It didn't take her long to find the Kiramagers, having returned back from Earth C after their earlier battle, and were now conversing with Kanaya and Rose about the day's insane events.  
  
"Excuse me," Serara made her presence known.  
  
"Hello, Sera," Rose smiled. "How are things?"

"I need to head home, but Miss Fraiser suggested someone walk with me," Serara said.  
  
"I'll go with you," Equius said, moving to stand from where he was sitting.

"Thank you," Serara smiled.   
  
And thus, it wasn't too much longer later that they were heading out down the foresty roads towards where Serara's home was situated.   
  
"Some day today, huh?" Serara asked.  
  
"It has been," Equius nodded.  
  
As they walked, they were on edge, though they tried not to show it.  
  
Cassandra Fraiser didn't casually suggest you do something without good reason to.  
  
Sure enough, a figure stepped out of the forest into the path infront of them.  
  
The same creep from the other day dressed like--  
  
"Oh, I'm dense," Equius grouched as he made the connection.   
  
Cyber Cam, from the Power Rangers Ninja Storm season that June's Ninja Storm team's power set had been based off of. The same that the Lothor general working for Gilgamesh had modeled his current persona off of. THAT was who this guy had modeled his clothing after.   
  
"You kind of are," The enemy ranger said, drawing out a sword from behind his back- it looked to be a samurai sword whose hilt was a microphone box. "You're going to pay for the deaths you Rangers have caused today and in days past." He pointed said sword at Serara. "But that day will be later. For now. I need the Mystic Ranger."  
  
"Why me?" Serara asked.  
  
"Because, you're an easy target who hasn't done anything impressive ever in her entire life," The unmorphed Samurai Ranger taunted- his civilian disguise rippling away, leaving just a robotic frame straight out of the Terminator, as he tapped a device mounted in his chest. "Samurai Storm, Ranger Form."  
  
He morphed in an instant- becoming the Green Samurai Ranger from the Ninja Storm team.  
  
"Really now? Let's rectify that misassumption," Serara said, eyes narrowing tightly as she drew out her Morpher and flipped it open to its wand form.  
  
"Even if that was true," Equius said, raising his Morpher, "do you really think you can take her from us?" He tapped the Kiramei Changer. _**_"KIRAMEI GO!"_**_  
  
 _ **"MAGICAL SOURCE, MYSTIC FORCE!"**_  
  
 _ **"KIRAMEI CHANGE!"**_  
  
The Samurai stood there as they morphed with flashes of blue, and then he shook his head as they drew their swords. "You really don't get it, do you? I know what you're planning. You think to eliminate my team to erase us all to bring back the 'old' team, right? Well, you're all mistaken. There is no 'old team', it was always us! We just--!"   
  
His lies were cut off at the pass as a terrible pressure settled over the battlefield.  
  
Serara's Magistaff was in its sword form, held in a backhand grip in her left hand as Equius handed her his Kiramei Sword to use in her right hand.  
  
Equius himself summoned Jetta into his sword form with another Morpher tap.   
  
"...You... two two are pretty deadly serious all of a sudden, aren't you?" The Samurai Ranger asked, suddenly not quite so sure of his chances.  
  
Neither Blue Ranger said a word as their swords gleamed with intent as they lowered into ready stances.  
  
"Well, fine, have it your way then." The Samurai tapped the buckle of his belt, and his vest disappeared with a flash of light. "Super Samurai Mode." His helmet's top half sun around to change the configuration. "I can be serious as well."   
  
He struck a ready position.  
  
And then Serara spoke two words.  
  
"Starburst Stream."  
  
She burst forwards at speed, and slammed her swords against the Samurai Ranger faster than he predicted- infact, she came at him from almost the completely wrong direction it seemed like- almost like she was moving faster than his robotic eyes could keep up.  
  
One, two, three, four, five- strikes hit him- six seven eight- the Samurai couldn't keep up- Nine. Ten. Eleven- How was she so fast--!? -Twelve. Thirteen. Fourteen.  
  
The Samurai staggered backwards- his sword shattered from the furious impacts.  
  
Fifteen- And Sixteen- His helmet shattered from the blow, leaving his cybernetic face exposed to the elements.  
  
"Kiramei Blue Dynamic!" And then Equius brought down a Megazord Finisher upon the Samurai Ranger.  
  
The robotic ranger exploded moments later- and the damaged, sparking green orb of a morpher tumbled out into the dirt in the aftermath.  
  
Equius and Serara demorphed, nodding to eachother, and then continuing on their way.  
  
"So he was totally lying, right?" Jetta asked, floating over their shoulders as they walked.  
  
"Of course he was," Serara nodded. "I can't imagine _That Person_ telling June and me what they did without being honest about it."

* * *

Meanwhile, a good distance away, Tomo looked to the rest of the Kiramagers, and Atsuya nodded.  
  
They continued to shadow their friends just incase anything else happened on the way to Serara's home.  
  
Nepeta made sure to collect the Morpher off the ground when she walked by the smoking patch of dirt that had been an enemy ranger moments ago.  
  


* * *

  
Lothor swore as he got the 'signal lost' alert for the Samurai Ranger. "I miscounted earlier, didn't I? That was the third one, not the fourth."  
  
Yes, he was only down to The Thunder Rangers and Ridley, now.   
  
What had that Ninja-bot of his been thinking?  
  
No, more to the point, who had he even been fighting?  
  
It took him about three minutes to dredge up the last minutes recording saved to a blackbox, and then he groaned in annoyance.  
  
"DAMN IT! Why would you go after the girl like that for!?" Lothor facepalmed. "It was Clearly a trap meant for you!"  
  


* * *

  
Serara colapsed against the door and slid to the floor the moment she had closed it behind her and Equius.  
  
"Sera? Are you alright?" Equius asked, looking at her in concern.  
  
"Not really, no," She answered, closing her eyes, and breathing rapidly. "Can you two stay the night? I don't want to be alone after all that."  
  
"We'll stand guard," Equius nodded.   
  
"Don't worry!" Jetta agreed, "We'll keep you company and keep you safe!"  
  
"The company's appreciated," Serara said, still not opening her eyes. "Tonight's going to be a bad one for me. I'll need the help waking up when... well. You'll know it when it happens."  
  
Equius looked to Jetta with concern on his face.  
  


* * *

  
Mashin Mahha sat in the forest as the sun passed below the horizon- full Mashin scale, with enough room inside for the Kiramagers to spend the night inside and help keep watch.  
  
They wouldn't be needed that night- but they were being safe rather than sorry.  
  
"The stars are lovely tonight," Mahha said to himself. "It's quite the sight, that it is..."  
  
It started to rain a few minutes later.  
  
"...Why did I jinx myself?" Mahha asked.  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 22ND, 2012.**  
  
"Right now she's sleeping sound, but she had nightmares all night. Very bad ones. We had to wake her up several times at her request because of them," Equius explained to his teammates, as well as the other Mystics as they grouped up the next morning outside Serara's house. "Did any of you know?"  
  
"I didn't know," Hector answered.  
  
"Me either," Miko shook her head. "Mads?"  
  
"Nope," Maddison denied. "I didn't know either."  
  
"She only told me they were dreams about her past life yesterday, not nightmares." Rose answered. "All I know from what we discussed over yesterday is that she's infrequently had them all her life, that they've only started to increase in frequency ever since she became a Ranger, that they're about her past life, and sometimes they get triggered by events in a day if we have to fight monsters. She's never told me how bad they were, or that they were nightmares. Just that they started getting bad after we discovered the Tunnel on the island."  
  
"I stayed the night once because she asked me to stay over while her parents were out of town," Fargo admitted. "We've tried casting magic to supress them when she thinks she's going to have a bad night, but she said the magic always just seemed to make it worse. I took her word at face value for how bad they were because of the magic when I saw them happen. Did she scream any?"  
  
Equius shook his head. "No," He said. "Just whimpered a lot, and a lot of harsh whispers begging someone to not hurt her."  
  
"That tracks," Fargo nodded. "What I saw was... a lot worse. For her, I think. Seriously major trauma, all things considered."  
  
"So... What now?" Harley asked. "Do we know if she talks with anyone about it?"  
  
"Jetta asked," Equius answered. "She is seeing Doctor Lalonde in Atlantis."  
  
"Then if she's talking with my older self," Rose shrugged, "The only thing we can do is just be there to help her through things whenever she thinks she's going to have a bad batch of nightmares."  
  
"More sleepovers?" Miko offered.  
  
"Seems the best option if you ask me," Hector nodded.  
  
"Especially if the NInja Rangers are targeting us when we're alone," Atsuya said. "It's probably best to not leave any of us alone for long periods of time."  
  
"I'll message Doctor Kae to see about scheduling things for that," Nepeta said, tapping at her Morpher to bring up holographic instant messaging screens.   
  


* * *

  
Dirk sat at a cafe, sipping at a seasonal spice drink as he waited for his conversational partner to arrive, and arrive they did.  
  
Clad not in a cloak, but rather a T shirt emblazoned with a jar of fireflies and a pair of jeans. Their hair shifted darker than it had been before, and their eyes settled on a hue of teal.  
  
Still, he recognized the Traveler the same as they moved towards his table and sat down.  
  
"You look different," Dirk said.  
  
"Had to ditch the last guise," they said, sighing. "I got seen by too many people. They'd be looking for me now."  
  
"That's what you get for self-inserting," Dirk countered.  
  
"Yeah yeah, I know, I screwed up," they admitted. "...But Serara and Equius didn't hesitate when they fought that Ninja Ranger. So I'll take it as a win."  
  
"Did you set it up for that to happen or was that just the flow of events?" Dirk asked.  
  
"Tried to set it up, but things went out of control," they answered. "You might've noticed time, ah, went a bit wobbly there for a while. Someone used Reversia in the future to affect the present."  
  
"Ah," Dirk nodded, and sipped at his drink again. "So, about Moltor."   
  
"I probably should've warned you," they winced. "Sorry. I forgot. I'd go back and try and modify that encounter but we're already past it and talking about it so it's already locked in."  
  
"Nah, I'm not pissed off about that," Dirk said. "You probably were going to and just got side tracked. Seemed like that was something that was bugging you and you needed to get off your chest."  
  
"I guess so," they shrugged.   
  
"So..." Dirk began, "about Moltor."  
  
"What about him?" The Traveler asked.  
  
"He's nothing but ash and smoke now," Dirk smirked. "Real poster child for why you shouldn't do drugs and all that shit. Don't do Monstones, Kids. It's bad for your health."  
  
"Haha, very funny!"  
  
"I'd like to think so," Dirk's smirk faded a bit. "Shit's about to get real, isn't it?"  
  
"...You say that like it isn't always?" The Traveler asked in turn.  
  


* * *

  
Garuza entered a large laboratory room somewhere on Earth as he had been directed to by Gilgamesh.  
  
"My Lord, you've requested my presence?" Garuza asked, gazing around the darkness shrouded room.   
  
Gilgamesh's voice echoed out, thin and raspy, "Yess... Garuza. How did your... Experiment... Play out?"  
  
Garuza froze. "Ah... You know about that?"  
  
"I witnessed Moltor's arrival... and near subsequent defeat," Gilgamesh's voice choed out, though less echoy than before- sounding stronger by the second as Garuza walked. "I also saw your arrival and interference."  
  
"Of the monstone fragments we recovered from Enter's rampage," Garuza explained, "their power is off the charts. However, it is overwhelmingly potent. Too potent. Though whether that was due to Moltor's state of mind or whether the Monstone's own power... I cannot say."  
  
Garuza spotted a lit up section of room, and made his way there.  
  
"Interesting..." Gilgamesh's shadow was cast on the wall now- Garuza could see him nodding. "Tell me, if we were to... attempt such a thing again..."  
  
Garuza arrived in the partially lit area- and saw that the light came from a large wellspring of water circling endlessly, within which Iyo Kodera's unconscious body remained floating- her body's modesty only preserved by several floating data screens.   
  
Garuza was, quite frankly, a little put off by that fact alone- but was more caught off guard by the various scorpion like contstucts walking across her body. They were organic, and yet mechanical- biomechanical as it were- withs strange sensors for claws and sparking nodes for tails.   
  
Before Garuza's very eyes, one such Scorpion was carefully... dying the girl's hair? Yes, dying seemed to be the closest word for it. As the tail moved along the hair, its natual pink color shifted to pale white. Another scorpion device was painting the Bechat mask emblem onto the skin on one side of her face.  
  
"Lord Gilgamesh," Garzua began, astonished, "what is all this?"  
  
"Promise, Garuza," Gilgamesh said. "Promise of the future. The... 'soul', of the one Enter called Escape resides in her body, but it is weak. It cannot sustain the body on its own. To use her as a tool will require an external power source. And while I could supply her with a relic... That seems... short sighted, given the destruction of so many of my Generals in recent days."  
  
"So you summoned me because of the Monstone?" Garuza asked.  
  
"Indeed," Gilgamesh turned to look at Garuza, his wraith like features exaggerated in the harsh lighting. "I believe we can... smooth over the differences with the Jamental Fusion technique you used earlier on Moltor."  
  
"To what ends?" Garuza asked.  
  
"The Rangers have grown powerful while we hunted Enter," Gilgamesh said. "He forced them to adapt faster than we could adapt to him. Now, they're poised to overwhelm us." His face twisted into a snarl. "We must adapt. And fast. We must find a means to overpower our weaknesses- to surpass all limits. A portion of a Relic we've since lost was capable of doing such a thing. We must now recreate it."  
  
"I see," Garuza nodded. "I believe I know where to start." He paused- "Though, if I may ask. Why now? Why wait so long after caputring the girl's body to use her as a vessel?"  
  
"Because, I first needed to understand what Enter had done to this girl... this Faerie of Alfheim," Gilgamesh reached a hand into the golden liquid, brushing a stray hand of hair away from her face for but a moment before withdrawing his hand and gazing at it. "And now I do. I understand all too well what Enter was trying to accomplish. And in doing so, he has provided me with a means to escape my own currently... inadequate body." He sneered at his own hand. "Beyond that. Possession can only take us so far when the Rangers finally have uncovered a means to separate our souls from our hosts. We need to adapt as well. Overcome what they've discovered." He chuckled. "We must break the rules before they break them on ourselves."  
  
"You seek to recreate Enter's experiment on a grander scale?" Garuza asked.  
  
"I do," Gilgamesh answered. "I believe your old Crystalian legends of a technique similarlly exist that may benefit us in the long run. More of this... circumstantial relevance to the time loop you and I find ourselves in, Garuza."   
  
"Which legends, My Lord?" Garuza asked.  
  
"Tell me what you know of Soul Transmigration," Gilgamesh asked, turning towards Garuza with a suspicious look in his eyes.  
  
Garuza faltered, hearing those words... then he answered in a half truth, "I know it is something that my Brother sought to experiment with on his own wife. But it failed."  
  
"Did it?" Gilgamesh asked. "Tell me. Do you understand what the Kiramagers did to your own Jouki, or are you just that dense?"  
  
Garuza bit back a snarl. "I understand what, though not the how." It was also a half truth. He knew perfectly well what they'd done, now that he'd seen the fruits of their labor in the form of Zabyun.  
  
"Have you seen the video of the latest battle the Kiramagers had with a Jamenshi?" Gilgamesh asked. "...If not, leave, and take a listen. Then come back and tell me if the new voice from that Zord, Mashin Express, sounds familiar or not."  
  
So Garuza did.  
  
He went to his private quarters, he watched the video, he listened to the voices, and he froze.  
  
"The Queen's voice?" Garuza took off his helmet in shock. "She's alive...?"  
  
...Then what did that say about his own brother's fate?  
  
Could Garuza be wrong that the Red Kiramager was his reincarnation? Or perhaps there was something more nefarious going on here...  
  
"I need to find where I left my Brother's corpse," Garuza decided. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'She died and we did nothing' is a nod to Gunnerkrigg Court. As is Moltor's whole. Uh. Setup. In that Shrine.  
> \---  
> So we've finally reached the end of Roxy and Jade's back and forth on their feelings of Sally and Harry being Rangers. The real issue that they've had so far is that they haven't had a chance to properly see their kids defending themselves successfully, and then Harry goes and fights a Jamenju from the ground thanks to Source Footage Restrictions aaaannnd... Yeah. We get them asking Jake to teach them how to take down a giant robot from the ground level.  
> \---  
> Dirk calls me out on some things and I explain my stance. I think... well, I spelled it out pretty clearly there in the text itself. If I do have some form of power that controls an actual reality somewhere out there- I'm taking responsibility for those actions in the world I made conscious decisions to affect- this setting, this story, this multiverse and reality. 
> 
> I'd really rather NOT think that I have that kind of power over anything- though. I really don't. It scares me that people would even suggest such a thing casually as a JOKE. Like- I have enough trouble keeping my own inner-sense-of-self in order- I don't need to suddenly have the weight of an entire planet's timeline crushing down on my shoulders. And this implication has been thrown at me enough times that I feel like people are doing it just to mess with me??? No! Stop that shit! I don't like what you're saying there because the amount of *self hate* it implies directed at myself to force me to sit through the life I've sat through is-- No! Why!? That kind of thinking HURTS on such a deep level and I don't like it. I don't like it one bit.  
> \---  
> When I shared the Moltor Fusion Scene with a friend of mine, he pointed out how similar it is to a Forced Digi-Xros from Digimon Xros Wars... He was right, so I solidified it as a proper nod.  
> \---  
> Burning red Rolland is a nod to a Magazine exclusive RED Rolland toy that was put out somewhere.   
> \---  
> Serara uses Starburst Stream! The SAO Reference was Super Effective! 
> 
> ...Serara's dealing with the same reincarnation blues I tend to touch on now and then. Sometimes your past life memories come back to haunt you. I wonder what could take care of that? A wish, likely...  
> \---  
> So yeah, we're building up for an endgame now- not just for this act, but for the next as well.
> 
> The next chapter is INTERMISSION: Jane. And that'll be posted...
> 
> Hrm, if I spend today working on Hiveswap Act 2... and tomorrow on more Determibent... 
> 
> OH. RIGHT. Should address that. You'll notice that there's a new series tag that's merging SG:ALT with XWAU02. Yeah, Things are a Multiverse, alright. Pay it no mind except that I'm posting some other chapters to a new story to finish off the XWAU02 series. It's a story that I mostly wrote for a fanventure some years back, but never posted to here because the PESTERLOGS. BLUH. So much Pesterlog Formatting. It's... kinda tedious. And also- I wrote another monster length story, it seems. LOL. 21k words posted so far and I know that's barely scratching the surface of it.
> 
> I apologize again for any notification spam people got yesterday. I was... KINDA just publishing as I was editing there. >>;;


	16. INTERMISSION: Jane.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jane Egbert meets Dirk Strider in a shopping market; Capping off old plot threads I may have forgotten to touch on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Contains Dirk Strider and Jane Egbert interacting.

**EARTH DATE: DECEMBER 23RD, 2012.**  
  
"Oh, hello... Hal?" Jane Egbert asked, startled. "No. You're Dirk Strider, aren't you?"  
  
"One and only Earth C varriant limted collectors edition," Dirk answered.  
  
The two had run into eachother unexpectedly at some off-world Market Place in the Milky Way galaxy.  
  
Well, supposedly unexpectedly. Admittedly there was a bit of actual randomness involved, but it was pre-planned for the most part.  
  
"Well, this sure is a surprise," Jane Egbert said, eyeing him. "It's been how long since we ran into eachother when I was interrogating my other self?"  
  
"Not long enough and far too long to remember," Dirk answered.   
  
"What are you doing all the way out here in Symphosia's market place?" Jane asked.  
  
"Buying some exotic foods for my friends back home to try out, and also to bribe one of them back into my good graces as part of an apology attempt," Dirk answered. "You?"  
  
"Oh, the same, though it's less that they're exotic for me, and more that they're nostalgic for my partner," Her eyes flashed subtly in the early morning lighting. "And just what do you have to apologize for?"  
  
"Spacing out for a few minutes after saying something kind of dramatic sounding and just acting like a jerk without intending it," Dirk shrugged.  
  
"Oooh, those can be rough," Jane winced. "You have my sympathies."  
  


* * *

  
It wasn't long before they'd decided to find a private place to continue their conversation.  
  
"So, Mister Strider, as you did come all this way to ask me some questions," Jane began, sipping at a cup of exotic, alien tea. "What did you have to ask of me, then?"  
  
"First and foremost I'm digging through old Mission Reports, trying to compare some of the modern events going on to what happened back in the day," Dirk explained. "Something caught my eye as something of a random sticking point of curiosity, so I might as well get that out of the way."  
  
"Of course," Jane nodded.  
  
"What ever happened to the Harcesis?" Dirk asked.  
  
"Ah, Amaunet and Apophis' child," Jane nodded. "Truthfully, I don't know much other than what I've been told. I don't think much of it was ever officially written down anywhere for security reasons. If I'm remembering things right..." She trailed off for a moment. "Eventually the Child's Goa'uld knowledge was removed from their DNA, and the child was allowed to live a normal life elsewhere."  
  
"Figured as much," Dirk nodded. "Second question. Is Jane Crocker actually dead?"  
  
Jane hummed, "Yes, is as far as she was slain, she did not revive, and then to ensure her demise we destroyed her corpse within an opening Stargate Vortex."  
  
"Good," Dirk said.  
  
"I happen to agree, she was a nasty reflection of who I could have become," Jane said, frowning. "Though, we all have those dark potentials lurking in the background somewhere."  
  
"Don't I know it," Dirk agreed. Their conversation lulled for a long moment, and then Dirk asked, "So. What are the Tok'ra up to these days?"  
"Peace, Love, and Rock and Roll?" Jane offered.  
  
"With the Galaxy under constant attack? You guys got to be thinking up something," Dirk frowned.  
  
 **"We're leaving that puzzle to others,"** Jane answered, except not. Her voice shifted noticably. This was her partner symbiote, Ka'turnal, talking now. **"Currently, we're not working on anything except devising means of removing ourselves from our genetic propensity for needing hosts."**  
  
"That's ambitious," Dirk remarked.  
  
 **"But plausible,"** Ka'turnal said. **"Egeria's current host, Joey Harley, was at one point a mind in a symbiote hosting within a cloned body- after a point, her mind was transmigrated out of the symbiote into the host body proper so that Egeria's soul could take the place of the Symbiote. We're working on a means of recreating that process."**  
  
"Not using the, ah, 'Twilight Bracelet'?" Dirk asked.  
  
 **"We've turned down offers of help with it for the time being,"** Ka'turnal answered. **"Egeria wishes for us to exhaust all avenues of research available that do not rely on that device before we commit to using it as the solution for our problems. We have been working with the Asgard to some degree on that front."**  
  
"Why?" Dirk asked. "Why go to all the trouble to divorce yourselves from what you are?"  
  
 **"Why not?"** Ka'turnal answered **. "Perhaps it's time the Goa'uld as a species was finally extinct. The Tok'ra... we have time to evolve now. To become something not reliant on the Jaffa, who continue to wane themselves off needing Symbiotes as the years march on."**  
  
Dirk couldn't argue the point. "Perfectly understandable."  
  
He could see where that plot point was heading, however, even if he didn't know why it was going to be important just yet.  
  
Still, he changed subjects, "A'ight, next question, for Jane. One of the kids in my family want's to learn how to cook."  
  
"Oh? What's his name?" Jane asked.  
  
"Tavros, or Tavvy," Dirk answered.  
  
 _"oohhh,"_ Jane whistled lowly. "I see now. Of course, I wouldn't mind reaching out to help him with that at some point." She gave a smile. "Anything to help mend the damage caused by my other self."  
  
Dirk honestly didn't think it was going to be that easy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the Short chapter that probably should've been posted sooner, but I'll stick with it for today because I gotta get back to either one of two things today: Finishing Hiveswap Act 2, or posting more Determibent Novelization. 
> 
> Next Chapter:
> 
> MSK: 01X23: "No Rhyme or Reason, No way to make easy 'til it's done." (Turn it Down!)


	17. MSK: 01X23: "No Rhyme or Reason, No way to make easy 'til it's done." (Turn it Down!)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Kiramagers head to Releeshan to see about retrieving a stone fragment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Talk of Life after a Civilization Collapse.  
> Loud Noise Induced Temporary Hearing Loss.  
> Character Deaths.  
> Mild Picture Linkage/Embedding.

**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 3RD, 2013.**  
  
"The Rangers are Preparing," Crimson Thunder said suddenly as he entered a small robotics lab.   
  
"Preparing for what?" Navy Thunder asked, looking up from a magazine he was reading.  
  
"A Trip to another dimension," Crimson Thunder reported. "I overheard them talking about the new D'ni home age earlier when I was spying on them at a market stall."  
  
"We should ambush them there," Ridley started- her right arm disconnected entirely, revealing exposed robotic joints in the shoulder.  
  
"No." Lothor said- working on said arm. "None of you are doing anything. Not after the Samurai lone wolf'd it into an early grave."  
  
"But-" Ridley started to protest.  
  
Lothor fixed her with a stern gaze. "Do you WANT to die? Do any of you??" He pointed at the three Ninja Robot Rangers with a screwdriver. "The whole point of the wish we made on that Kanaema Stone Monster was to give you five a proper chance at LIFE. No more card possessions and no more existential crisises of doubt. That it didn't succeed because we didn't GET all six rangers in one swoop- because there were only FIVE of you to begin with- was a critical thinking error on our part. One I'm still trying to figure out how to rectify. The wish is already half undone on you lot anyways!"  
  
"Our Human forms are disappearing by the day with every death we suffer," Crimson Thunder remarked. "Which is why we should stop the rangers and-"  
  
"And what? Get destroyed and make all of this pointless?" Lothor asked, glaring at them all. "No. You three are remaining indoors until the Rangers are dealt with elsewhere. Until I can recover the Samurai's card- if it's even still intact, considering Red's was destroyed entirely."  
  
"Damned Lucky Shot," Ridley scowled.  
  
"Fine then," Navy said simply, standing up. "We'll just go train endlessly until we get our Pinnocchio Moment." He wandered over to Crimson Thunder and slapped him on the shoulder. "Let's go shoot some hoops."  
  
Crimson Thunder stared after Navy for a moment, and then followed after him.  
  
Ridley sighed. "You know they're going to go get themselves killed, Uncle."  
  
"I know," Lothor said, eyeing her with remorse. "But you're my Niece, Ridley. Not them. You're the only family I have left. So you stay." He then resumed working on her detached arm. "They can go die if they want to throw their lives away in a meaningless gesture of revenge."  
  


* * *

  
"So what's the plan?" Crimson asked Navy as they walked down a long, dark hallway.  
  
"We're going after the Rangers. But not alone," Navy answered. "Kurantula and Garuza are off on some wild corpse hunt, so their base is unguarded. So's their stockpile of masks."  
  
"You thinking about using a Jamenshi?" Crimson asked.

"Oh, yeah," Navy nodded. "A real Loud Mouth, too."

* * *

_"When People Shine!" Mashin Fiya narrated, "Miracles are Born!"_   
  
_"Kiramental!" He continued. "The proof of Warriors who can Change the Future!"_   
  
_"Tension Maxed!" he shouted- "KIRAMEI GO!!!"_

**[ _MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY) **

* * *

**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 4TH, 2013.**  
  
One by one, the Kiramagers linked into the[ arrival plaza on the Age of Releeshan](https://archive.guildofarchivists.org/w/images/8/89/Releeshahn.jpg), gazing out over the wide, expansive, green hued expanse of fields, hills, rivers, and tall spires.

Their Mashin partners decaptchalogued, hovering around as they took in the view, even as Princess Mabushiina linked in behind the rangers, holding the back half of Mashin Express in her arm- the gemstone now housing her mother's spirit rather than the soul of Mashin Drybe.  
  
"This place is amazing!" Fiya exclaimed.  
  
"It's so pretty and sparkly!!" Heliko gasped.  
  
"I'm reminded of Crystalia!" Queen Mabayuine said, wobbling within Mabushiina's arms. "How nostalgic...!"  
  
"It's an amazing place..." Mabushiina agreed.  
  
Artoria Gray was already waiting there for them as they arrived. "Welcome, everyone, to Releeshahn."  
  


* * *

  
Gray lead them down the many winding roads and streets of the main Releeshahn settlement, her black-grey cloak billowing in the early January winds- which were leaning vaguely Springish here on the age, rather than mid-winter as it would be on Earth.  
  
"We'll be heading to the home and personal library of Aleshay, daughter of Athsheba," Gray explained to the team as they walked. "Athsheba was the girl you'd inquired about- the one who'd survived the fall thanks to a stranger who handed her a large blue stone."   
  
"So that was her name..." Heliko said in a quiet whisper, held within Nepeta's arms.   
  
"Unfortunately, Athsheba passed on early on in 2010, leaving the estate to her daughter, Aleshay," Gray continued. "Athsheba had a considerably large collection of minerals, gemstones, and a surprising amount of statues and book relics that she'd retrieved from one of her family's estates some years after the fall."  
  
"Statues?" Atsuya asked. "Were they artists?"  
  
"I'm not entirely sure," Gray answered, "you'd have to ask Aleshay."  
  
They passed by a large library building, which was having some creative writing event out on a patio attached to the front porch. One person was explicitly scribbling away on a modern spiral bound notebook with a mechanical pen, and someone next to them was writing in a hardcover bound journal. Others were using quils and ink pots. Atleast one person was typing away on an elaborate digital keyboard hologram- one rigged to play very loud clattering noises, almost as if it were an antique typewriter. Many of the writers were sending then annoyed glances as they worked.  
  
"That looks like fun!" 

"Releeshahn sure has a lot of libraries," Tomo observed, not too much longer later, as they passed another, much smaller library structure.  
  
"D'ni was a culture of Writers- primarily of Ages," Gray explained. "D'ni had many libraries, mostly for Linking Books, but there were also those libraries of normal books. Most of them private. Atrus' attempt at restoring D'ni lead to many of these librarires being raided and secured here in Releeshan- now publically avaialble given the much smaller population after the Fall."

"That makes sense," Tomo nodded.  
  
It wasn't too much longer before they arrived at a small hill of a mountain- it wasn't truly that big of a place, but it was was evident that a house had been built into the hill's very foundations.  
  
There was a D'ni woman sitting out in the yard, watching her daughter run around playing with a stick horse- pretending to either be riding it, or being a horse doing horse things.  
  
"What an adorable cutie!" Mabayuine cooed over the girl.  
  
"She is quite energetic!" Mabushiina agreed.  
  
"Rangers, this is Aleshay, and her daughter, Ferras," Gray handled the introductions a minute later. "Aleshay, these are the Kiramagers that were inquiring about the stone."  
  
"A pleasure to meet you," the D'ni woman, Aleshay, said, offering them a small wave. "How is it exactly you came to hear about my Mother's saving relic?"  
  
"Heliko?" Nepeta asked, looking to her partner. "Do you want to explain, or...?"  
  
"I'll do it," Heliko said, taking off into the air to hover in front of the daughter of that girl her past life had saved. "Hello, Ma'am Aleshay, I'm Heliko... And I'm the reincarnation of the woman who saved your mother."  
  
Aleshay stared at the floating pink kiramei stone for a moment, then gave a small laugh. "Well, of all the connections I never thought of how you knew about that encounter... that wasn't one I was expecting."  
  


* * *

  
While Mabushiina and Mabayuine, plus a few of the other Kiramei stones kept Aleshay's daughter, Ferras, company and observed, Aleshay lead the team up the pathway towards the house proper- passing by various statues and pieces of stone made artwork.  
  
"Your family were Artists?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"I assume so," Aleshay said. "Mother didn't talk much about her family. Too many bad memories, I'd imagine. I was born off world after the Fall by some time, and by then Mother had already moved all of these statues off of 'the Island.' It was just the Island, she never gave me a name for it or a location. " She frowned. "I've actually tried finding it out on the Lake a few times over the years, but to no success so far."  
  
"The lake in D'ni's cavern?" Harley asked.  
  
"Yes, that's the one," Aleshay nodded. "As far as I've been able to piece together, my Mother's parents and grandparents were rich enough to own a private island on the Lake. I think they were either members of the Guild of Artisians, or possibly something to do with Stone Carvers? Many of the artifacts Mother was able to bring home from the island seem to be things one could carry by hand when linking, or on a boat. The rest of the larger objects are things she's carved out of the walls here on the estate."  
  
"That's amazing," Atsuya said, looking around.  
  
"She carved this all by hand?" Harry asked, looking around at some of the larger statues.   
  
"She did," Aleshay nodded. "Flat out refused anyone else's help too. And that was in addition to her going and helping with some of the contstuction efforts here on Releeshahn."  
  
"What a Wonder Woman," Harry whispered, astonished.  
  
"She certainly was something else, alright," Aleshay agreed.  
  


* * *

  
Shovels dug into the dirt of a random world in the Alternia Galaxy.  
  
"Garuza, why are we digging out here in the middle of nowhere for!?" Kurantula complained as the sun bore down on them.  
  
"As I've explained a dozen times already- Literally-" Garuza said, snapping his gaze at the Mofang as he drove his shovel down into the dir. "We are searching for my brother's Corpse."  
  
"Yes, I know that, but why are we DIGGING IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!?" Kurantula insisted. "We're out here digging without landmarks or anything! You just opened a portal, had Jouki drop us off here, and this is the THIRTEENTH HOLE WE'VE DUG THIS WEEK!" He stomped his foot into the upended dirt.  
  
Around them, twelve other holes in the ground lay exposed.  
  
Garuza sneered, "Because the method by which I buried my brother's corpse ensured that it was randomly hidden under the ground here. And it's also been a thousand years. The terrain has changed."  
  
"So we keep digging??" Kurantula asked.  
  
"So we keep digging!" Garuza angrily answered with an astutely aggravated tone of voice.  
  


* * *

  
"Unfortunately, my mother didn't want to keep the gemstone in obvious places- she was told to hide it, so she did," Aleshay explained as they entered a library inside the house. She made her way for a specific bookshelf. "So. When she finally returned to D'ni, and returned to the old family estate, she recovered the Descriptive Book to a private age our family had owned, and she hid the stone there in that Age." She pulled forth a book from the shelf- much thinner than a Descriptive Book, infact, it was- "This is a Linking Book to that place. My Mother never told me the name it had before. Presently, we call it The Reach."  
  
"Why the Reach?" Equius asked.  
  
Aleshay worked her mouth for a moment, before finally admitting, "Because that's what the people who live there call it."  
  
"It's inhabited?" Gray suddenly asked- astonished, and wary.   
  
"Unfortunately, yes," Aleshay nodded. "From what I've been able to gather, my mother's family commissioned an Age rich with stone, and metal ores that they could use for their artistic works. This world was the result. Fortunately it seems my family weren't the kind to exploit the natives- and thank the Maker for that. Instead they worked out some kind of trade deal with one of the local villages. After the Fall the locals wondered what had befallen my Family, and when my mother finally visited the age to gift them the stone for safekeeping..." She shook her head. "At any rate, I've only visited a few times to ensure the Age's stability. They don't worship our family as gods, but they revere us as... martyrs, I suppose is the closest word I can think of right now. Victims of tragedy. It's very awkward to visit."  
  
"Will they give us any trouble in retrieving the stone?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"It's hard to say," Aleshay answered. "I've never asked about it, save to see it the once. They've lodged it firmly into the chest of a statue. They may be willing to turn it over, but desecrating the statue would be... contentious. As I said they revere my family to some degree for the tragedy that befell us- and that statue is one of such artifacts they've made to do such."  
  
"We ought to at least visit," Fiya said. 

"We should Introduce ourselves," Mahha agreed. "It's only polite, after all."   
  
"We might not need the stone right away anyways," Tomo said. "It may be safer to leave it there until we have the other fragments anyways."  
  
"Well, it's early for a stability visit, but I think I may as well set up for doing so anyways," Aleshay nodded. "Let me just set the book out and gather my supplies, then we can-"  
  
The Kiramager's morphers chimed off then.  
  
Everyone looked around in concern as Atsuya activated his morpher. "This is Atsuya."

* * *

  
"Atsuya, we've got an issue," Gina reported over the line across Ages from the Beltus. "The Crimson and Navy Thunder Rangers just teamed up with several bechats to attack one of the only Book Rooms on Diaspora to have a Link to Releeshahn. The Overdrives are on the scene thanks to a Seer prediction and they're stalling, but if even one of those monsters uses a Releeshahn book-"  
  
"We'll head back to the link in point to cut them off," Atsuya answered, no doubt nodding.

* * *

[The Jamenshi observed](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage23-boombx.png) the Overdrives fighting against the Thunder Rangers, and snarled. "It's time to jam this jam!" He shouted- and then produced an ungodly noise from his mask- horrid music played out with a loud shriek of discordant...  
  
Look, I really can't describe how horrid this noise is with any degree of convincing narrative prose. It's like every single radio station in the Pegasus and Alternia Galaxies was playing at the same time.   
  
Just. Imagine the worst, eardrum rattling shrieking noise you can and increase it by like, a thousand notches.   
  
It was bad enough that everyone within a half-mile radius of the noise had to ball up and cover their ears to try and prevent damage.  
  
Even the Thunder Rangers, who were prepared for it, still staggered upon hearing the noise that Stereo Jamenshi was putting out.  
  
The Jamenshi casually strolled up to the Book Room, snatched up the Releeshahn book, and offered it to the Bechats- who piled through rapidly.  
  
"Go deal with the Kiramagers!" Navy Thunder shouted over the noise. "We'll stay here and finish the Overdrives once you leave."  
  
"Yeah, just go and turn that awful racket towards the Kiramagers!" Crimson Thunder stated.  
  
"Farewell!" The Jamenshi nodded, and linked through the book he was holding. The book tumbled to the ground and landed with an audible thud in the sudden absence of the horible shrieking noise.  
  
"My ears hurt," Navy Thunder stated simply.  
  
"WHAT?" Crimson asked.   
  
"What?" Navy asked in turn.  
  
Zahra, crouched on the ground turned her Drive Detector's blaster form at them, and fired off a couple of shots.  
  
 ** _PCHWAHM! PCHWAHM!_** The noise was overbearingly loud in the mean time- but Crimson and Navy went flying from the impacts they still didn't hear coming.

* * *

Stereo Jamenshi linked into the linking plaza just to find himself suddenly on the long end of Mashin Express' glowing laser eyes- the train zord hovering above him with clear intent to blast him off the surface of the planet.  
  
His Bechats were all taken care of- bodies lying in piles next to the Kiramagers who all had their weapons pointed at him- glowing and building up to a firing sequence.  
  
It was also eerily silent save for the noise of static and the sudden absence of cacophonous noise coming from the Jamenshi's mask.  
  
"...Ah, I miscalculated your arrival times thanks to you using that Mashin's instant Hyperdrive window, didn't I?" The Jamenshi asked, tapping the side of his helmet.  
  
"You really did," Nepeta answered with a nod.  
  
"Also... where's my music?" The Jamenshi asked. "I should be getting all the radio from across several galaxies right now?"  
  
"Gina warned us before you linked and we asked the local relay station to do a power down test cycle," Atsuya answered.  
  
"Ah. I see." The Jamenshi sighed, hanging his head in defeat. "Go ahead and fire then?"  
  
"Gladly!" Harley said.  
  
"KIRAMEI RUSH STREAM!" six voices shouted.  
  
The ensuing explosion didn't even leave a scorch mark on the link in spot.  
  


* * *

  
"Damn it," Lothor swore as he watched the Kiramagers link back to scene where the Overdrives and Thunder Rangers were staggering back to their feet. "So much for that plan of theirs, huh? Finished before they could even start."  
  
"Let's give them one last fighting chance," Ridley said, holding Kurantula's teleportation staff. "Full Insurance Mask, activate!" The gauge filled to full. "Jukebox Hildon! GO!"  
  


* * *

  
Thunder and Navy went sprawling as the Kiramagers and Overdrives, still slightly staggered, blasted them out of the book room.  
  
"I HATE THIS!" Crimson shouted.  
  
"Your ears are still busted!?" Navy asked-- And then there was a roar of a portal, and out stepped a Jamenju.[ Hilldon type, with a jukebox for a head](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage23-boombx2.png).

"Everyone, let's go!" Atsuya called, tapping his morpher to release Fiya.  
  
 _ **_"Time to Shine!"_** _Harry's morpher announced as he tapped it and called out, "Wonder Change!"  
  
 _ **_"OH EXCELLENT!"_**_ He transformed on the spot- as well as summoning Drijan.  
  
"MASHIIIIIIIIN!" The five machin rocketed forwards.  
  
"MASHIN HENKEI!"  
  
"MASHIN GATTAI!"

**__ **

**__"GIGANT DRILLER!"/"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"__ **

* * *

  
"While they deal with that, we'll finish you off!" Tavvy declared, drawing out his water blaster weapon.   
  
"WHAT'S THAT!?" Crimson asked.  
  
"Oh for the love of-" Navy swore.

* * *

“A Jukebox?” Harry asked. “What a retro thing!”  
  
“Huh? What’s a jukebox?” Atsuya asked as they looked from the Jamenju towards Gigant Driller.

The Jamenju answered by spewing forth a barrage of Music CDs at the two Megazords.  
  
 ** _“WAH! A CD ATTACK!?”_** Tomo shouted- swinging the wheel to dodge.  
  
“Don’t try this at home, kids!” Shovellow shouted as Kiramagein and Gigant Driller blocked the disk attack.  
  
“Leave this to me!” Harry threw himself forwards to try and block the barrage aiming at Kiramagein, alas, he just wasn’t fast enough to deflect the shots and took a lot of damage that sent him colapsing to Driller’s knees.  
  
“This attack isn’t music related at all...!” Harry groaned.  
  
“Then in that case...” Atsuya declared within Fiya, tapping and spinning his morpher. “ZABYUN! WEAPON FORMATIONS!”  
  
“MASHIIIIIIIIIIN!” Zabyun spun out into battle, transforming into Mashin form for the immediate moment- blowing past the CD blast like a shield- and deflecting the CDs right back at the Jamenju.  
  
“Now!” Atsuya spun his morpher again.  
  
Zabyun’s front and rear cars split, forming into blasters that Kiramagein grabbed onto- poor Jetta was left circling overhead for the moment.  
  
[“Kiramagein, Zabyun Magnums!”](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage23-boombx5.png) Atsuya called out. “Take this!”

They raised Zabyun’s front end and fired off a blaster shot- then switched arms. “And some more!”  
  
[The Jamenju staggered backwards from the impacts](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage23-boombx6.png).

* * *

“Defender Vest!” Vrissy summoned the vest and the blaster weapon- June and Kanaya stood behind her for the recoil support.  
  
Tavvy charged up his water blaster.  
  
“COMBINE WEAPONS!” The Thunder Rangers threw their blaster and claw weapon together into the “THUNDER BLASTER!”  
  
Sally and Zahra charged up energy attacks on their staff weapons.  
  
“RED LINE TIME!” Sally shouted.  
  
“FIRE!” Both teams shouted- launching out their attacks at eachother.  
  
Tavvy’s water blast struck the Thunder Ranger’s bolt first- blocking it and exploding it prematurely with an explosion of steam that blocked the Thunder Ranger’s view...  
  
Meaning they didn’t have time to dodge the Drive Blaster’s drill attack piercing through it a moment later, or Sally and Zahra’s staff attacks swinging through after that one a moment later.  
  
The Thunder Rangers sparked and flared- electricity racing across their robotic bodies.  
  
“Bro... I think Lothor was right...” Navy said tiredly.  
  
“What? I didn’t catch... that...?” Crimson answered, unaware of what was said entirely.  
  
“Why’d we use that Jamenshi design again?” Navy asked, rhetorically, as the two of them fell to the ground and exploded.  
  
Two morphers went flying out of the aftermath, tumbling to a halt, sparking with damage on the ground next to a pair of startled birds.  
  


* * *

  
“Well that was disappointing,” Lothor turned to Ridley, only to see that she was gone and Kurantula’s staff lay forgotten on the floor.  
  
“Wait!” He shouted. “Ridley!! Just-! Wait for me!” He ran for the nearest teleporter.  
  


* * *

  
“Next formation!” Atsuya called out, and Zabyun shifted again.  
  
Kiramagein, holding Jetta once more, reached out as the middle section of Zabyun hit the ground infront of them, and then was topped off by the head piece- [forming a megazord version of his ground sized spear formation.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage23-boombx7.png)

“ZABYUN FINAL WAVE LANCER!” The five Kiramagers called out, and they stabbed forwards with Zabyun at the Jamenju.

“ZABYUUUUUUUUUUN!”

He rocketed forwards at speed- bursting through the Hildron’s chest, and blowing clean through the nostalgicly themed monster.

Gigant Driller had just gotten to his feet again as they pulled back and the Jamenju exploded.

Kiramagein twirled Zabyun overhead dramatically for a moment, before lowering the spear to the ground.

_**_”CHECKMAGE!”_  
** _

* * *

“Is everyone alright?” Harry asked as he joined up with the Overdrives- the Kiramagers a few feet behind him.  
  
“My head hurts like mad and my ears are ringing,” Sally answered, “but nothing a trip to Atlantis’ infirmary probably won’t fix.”  
  
 _“If you get that far!!”_  
  
At that interjection,everyone turned and looked, and they saw that Ridley was standing there by a tree, glaring at the two teams.  
  
“Why does this have to keep happening today?” Atsuya asked, exasperated.  
  
“Why do YOU keep killing us all!?” Ridley asked. “Mesogog! My Team! Moltor! Necrolai!!” She shouted- “YOU MONSTERS!”  
  
“You’re the ones who keep attacking our worlds!” Kanaya said, taking a step forwards. “Ridely... You wanted to be a Ranger too...! But this...! Is it true? Are you really the Blue Ninja Ranger...?”  
  
Ridley raised her Morpher clad arm. “Damn right, It’s true.”   
  
“Fucking hell, they just had to be right, didn’t they?” June quetly asked herself.  
  
“I see.” Kanaya sighed. “Why? Ridley? Why do this?”  
  
“We were going to destroy you from within!” Ridley said, left hand clenching into a fist. “But now I’m just going to have to destroy you from the outside!” She went to activate her Morpher. “NINJA STORM! RANGER FOR-!”  
  
Lothor teleported in then, grabbed her by the arm, and tried to stop her from fighting. “NO! YOU WILL NOT! YOU WON’T FIGHT THEM!” He insisted.  
  
“LET ME GO, UNCLE!” Ridley shouted- fighting against him.  
  
The two fought- and the Kiramagers and Overdrives had no idea what to do about this turn of events. Did they attack? Did they let Lothor stop her?  
  
What was the right course of-?  
  
Without hesitation, June drew her sidearm and took aim at the two enemies, having made her decision.  
  
“GIVE ME MY TEAM BACK!” She shouted- unloading on the two.  
  
Ridley took several blasts to her body before Lothor threw himself infront of her to tank the next shots and teleport away.  
  
“NO!” June shouted, snarling as they vanished. “NO! Fuck! Damn it...! They got away...!”  
  


* * *

  
“Ridley! No! Come on, niece! Stay with me!” Lothor begged as he dragged his niece’s sparking body back into the work lab.  
  
“I- I’m sorry- I should’ve--!” sparks flared. “I should’ve listened--!”  
  
“Don’t give up on me now you stubborn girl!” Lothor begged.   
  
As he fretted, Lothor didn’t notice Gilgamesh enter the room.  
  
Nor did he notice how Gilgamesh had a very twisted smile on his wraith featured face.  
  
“Lothor,” He spoke. “Give me the girl.”  
  
Lothor froze, startled as he heard Gilgamesh’s voice speaking to him.  
  
“I- I don’t want to- to die-” Ridley begged between sparks.  
  
Lothor closed his eyes, and prayed he wasn’t making the wrong choice.  
  


* * *

  
“Finally,” Garuza declared as he brushed away the dirt from the solid brown stone hidden beneath the pitch black dirt of the soil he’d been removing until now. There, he saw a relief that appeared with the same facial structure of Oladdin’s face. “My brother’s corpse at last.”  
  
“Good,” Kurantula said. “Maybe now we can head home?”  
  
“We’ll have to finish unearthing him from the ground, remove the stone he’s entombed in,” Garuza said, “but yes. Soon we can return.”  
  


* * *

  
“Damn it, we almost had her,” June hissed, pacing outside the book room as everyone demorphed and took stock of the situation. “We almost had them all!”  
  
“If she survives, we’ll confront her just the same,” Kanaya said, frowning at the spot Ridley had appeared at.   
  
“If she appears again,” June started. “If Lothor keeps her behind lock and key...!”  
  
Sally’s morpher chimed, and she flipped it open. “Yes, Doctor Kae?” she asked.  
  
 _“Overdrives, Seers are predicting you’ll be needed to aid the Mystics and Go-Busters,”_ Gina stated. _“They’ve gone to aid the ToQGers who discovered several of Gilgamesh’s generals teaming up for a nefarious plot.”_  
  
“We’re on it,” Sally nodded. 

“What about us Kiramagers?” Harry asked.  
  
 _“I was just about to call you next,”_ Gina said, having heard over the line. _“Please return to Releeshahn to continue your hunt for the next gemstone fragment.”_

“Understood,” Atsuya nodded. “Let’s see this through.”  
  


* * *

  
 **KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!**  
  
Mabushiina sat in the yard with Aleshay’s daughter snoozing in her lap. “I feel like I missed something important somewhere. But it’s so peaceful right now anyways I don’t really mind.” She sighed, content.  
  


* * *

  
 **NEXT KIRAMAGER!**  
  
“There’s a legend about a phoenix at this shrine?” Atsuya asked.  
  
“I sensed a great power and so came here,” A mysterious shrine maden stated.  
  
“Oh no!” Tomo started. “Aren’t you--!?”  
  
“LET’S BOOOOOOOOOOOWL!!!” A Jamenshi cheered.  
  
 ** _Next Episode: 24: "Pilgrim knows the road to go. How many times we've told you so?" (Part 1)_**  
  
“Let’s sparkle next time too!” Heliko cheered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DID I actually use this as a chance to try some world building for an area I'm designing for URU Live? Yes, yes I did. Is all of this *canon* to that area I'm working on? *certainly not!* XD ...Beauty of the multiverse though.
> 
> Those are legit D'ni names I took off of a D'ni name registry someone put together online, btw. So they should be proper.
> 
> \---
> 
> Not much to say about this chapter except that it's set up pure and simple.
> 
> Next chapter, INTERMISSION: Card Games.
> 
> In which I try to build a house of cards for no other reason than the challenge of it. 
> 
> \---
> 
> The last few days may not have seemed like I did much, but I went through Vamola Kyoryuger and Exiled Stories in the XWAU02 series for a typo check, edit pass, and overall general memory refresher. That's been finished now. I need to go back through XWAU02 proper and XME for a music link check as well as typo passing. But, eh. That can wait for a bit. Okay. Right. Now that this chapter's up, time to get back to the thing I was supposed to be doing this morning but put off... Right. Time to finish that thing. Yessireee... Time to finish it and not get distracted doing something else like--
> 
> OH. HEY. LUNCH TIME!


	18. INTERMISSION: Card Games.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some brief bit of meta.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:   
> House of Cards building... and falling.

**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 4TH, 2013.**  
  
"So what're you setting that thing up for?" Dirk asked, eyeing the random person with piercing teal eyes who was stacking a house of cards at a random cafe table, somewhere on Earth C.  
  
He wasn't sitting at that table, but the one over, if only because he didn't want to disturb their work.  
  
The Traveler eyed him, breath held, as they placed the next card, then carefully backed away to speak. "Just another series of consequences being tied up."  
  
"Oh, I get the metaphor for assembling a situation, but what's the point of the house of cards?" Dirk asked. "They're always going to come tumbling down eventually."  
  
"That's the point," The Traveler said, eyeing the incomplete stack, and judging the remaining amount of cards in the deck. "I'm setting this up just to knock it down. It's the fun of the matter."  
  
"Are things really just about to come tumbling down on us?" Dirk asked.   
  
"That's the thing about the house of cards," The Traveler answered. "You never know whose actions brought it down and why. Just because I'm setting this up doesn't mean it's bad for any specific group of people. Who moves into this house before it crumbles? Who takes ownership of it? Whose series of actions do each card represent? It'll come tumbling down, yeah, but... For Who?"  
  
Dirk blinked, eyeing the unfinished stack of cards, and then asked, "So if I went and knocked that over right now-?"  
  
"Then you're just being a jerk by not letting me finish it first," The Traveler said, frowning. "No metaphors about it. It doesn't have any significance to anything if I don't finish it first."  
  
"Fine, fine," Dirk put his hands up in surrender. "I won't touch it 'til you're done."  
  
"Thank you," The Traveler took out another set of two cards and went to balance them against the stack...  
  
"So, did you steal those cards from the Egberts, or are they just the same brand?" Dirk asked, and the Traveler snorted in response.  
  
Then, the house of cards tumbled down, and the Traveler gave Dirk an annoyed look.  
  
"Hey, don't look at me," Dirk said, smirking. "I flat out didn't touch it. I kept my promise."  
  
The Traveler sighed. "Fine. But you're helping me rebuild it because you distracted me this time."  
  
"Does that have any meta significance?" Dirk asked.  
  
"No, it means you freaking distracted me and you're going to help me undo that collapse because you distracted me," The Traveler said. "Not everything has to have a meta play at stake here, Dirk."  
  
"Then what's even the point of these back and forths?" Dirk asked.

"Foreshadowing," The Traveler answered. "Now help me fix these cards or I'll give you rainbow hair."

"I think I'll take the rainbow hair, actually," Dirk smirked. "Then maybe I can call myself Rainbow Dirk!"  
  
The Traveler stared for a moment, and then asked, "Did you seriously just make a MLP joke?"  
  
"So what if I did?" Dirk asked.  
  
"I'm not turning you into a pony."  
  
"Damn, and here I was hoping I could provoke you into it, _'Destoria,'"_ Dirk taunted.  
  
The Traveler rolled their eyes. "I'll give you the hair anyways if you help me fix the card tower?"  
  
"Deal," Dirk sat up on the spot.  
  
Nobody else in the cafe paid the two of them any mind, or even heard a word that had been said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Later. I gave Dirk a rainbow colored cosplay wig. He was less than amused, but surprisingly okay with it.  
> \---
> 
> Next Chapter: SGA:06X20: “With Your Eyes Alone.” 
> 
> And No, surprisingly, that's NOT the end of season 6 for SG:Atlantis' production numbers.
> 
> I've got not much else to say here except that I finished Hiveswap Act 2 and posted a shortish thing last night.  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/28141791  
> There's the link if anyone wants to check it out and hasn't yet.


	19. SGA:06X20: “With Your Eyes Alone.”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Kiramagers head to The Reach to retrieve a fragment of Zabyun's stone for the time loop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> The Elder Scrolls Mythology.  
> Forced bodily modifications.  
> Alternate Self shenanigans.  
> Time Loops.  
> Depictions of continental destruction.  
> Mentions of the centuries and eras of canonical TES-Verse Reach Vs Nord fighting over land.  
> Character Death.  
> Mixed gender bathing.  
> Bathing related nudity.  
> Lore flashback/foreshadowing.

**_"Previously on Stargate..." Harley narrated._ **   
_\---_   
_A much younger Keiko Ayano throws herself through a Quantum Mirror._   
_\---_   
_An older Keiko narrated, "That place was weird. Like, it was always overcast with an orange light even though the sky was deep, night time blue, and there was never any sun in the sky. Just stars everywhere. The plants were neon blue or orange, and... it was just weird!!"_   
_\---_   
_"Colonel Ozma!" Ruby Branwen shouted, sounding shocked and angry. "What are you doing!?"_   
_"It is as you said you yourself--- Lieutenant Branwen! 'I am doing what needs to be done!'" A man's voice yells in turn. "I call forth the armies of Hircine to-!"_   
_PCH-BWAM! And then the high pitched howl of Ronon's power blaster fires off- Glass shatters- followed immediately by that of several quick blasts of a P-90 and the man's sharp cry of pain._   
_\---_   
_A private jet races across the desert countryside. Inside, Doctors Keller, Mckay, Freeman, Kae, and you, Miyu Shinohara, and Gina's date Ziggy, rest inside the thing with a mixture of energies._   
_\---_

_KRAMER INNOVATIONS logo appears on the screen, replacing whatever he'd been showing before. You weren't really paying attention._

_"Now, the science behind this is immensely complex," Tunney continues, "But, there will be full documentation given out as you leave the lecture hall. For right now, let's focus on the Cliff Notes. It begins with a massive Heat-sink, one of my own design, that draws heat from the surrounding environment."_   
_"Where does the heat go?" Keller and Mckay mutter._   
_"Now, where does the heat go, you may ask? -- I present to you..." A diagram appears on the screen and your heart skips a beat. "The Tunney Space-Time Matter Bridge!"_   
_\---_   
_"This is bad," Gina says. "This is the Ranger Series Bio-Field he's tapping into for Power Generation, somehow!"_

_"This math got stolen from my world, too!" Freeman growls. "I recognize Eli and Kleiner's work in this! How the hell did he get his hands on this?"_

_"That's what I'm asking myself," your name is Rodney Mckay, and you growl. "He's working off of the Original math for the matter bridge from the original Ancient Power Generator Facility- it's nowhere near even REMOTELY safe. It's not including any of the safeguards I wrote in during my attempts, and it doesn't include nearly ANY of the safeguards my alt-verse Sister wrote in on her version of Atlantis either!"_

_"And you're sure this is all your work?" Keller asks._

_You, Freeman, and Gina all look at her with the same look- and speak with the same tone of voice, "Yes. We're Sure."_   
_\---_   
_A storm whriled over the desert facility._   
_\---_   
_In a food court, a blue tear in space time ripped itself open, and someone's loud invocation could be heard through it, forcing people to flee from it, screaming for their lives._

_"Mighty Lord Hircine, Noble Lord Hircine, we come before you in all obeisance and humility, acknowledging your divine authority over the forest and all the lawful prey therein!"_   
_\---_   
_Resting in a kneeling pose in the center of a small crater in the floor with a horde of newly arrived Werewolves looking all stunned and somewhat squashed flat by the impact is Rose Egbert- eyes glowing gold and sort of... glimmering whisps of yellow energy radiating off of her._

_"Alright," she starts. "Who's the next clown to volunteer to get smashed?"_   
_\---_   
_The Cat who called herself Ezabi sat and watched from up upon a fake tree branch as destruction was wrought upon an innocent shopping mall food court._   
_She climbed down with an unnatural ease towards her other self- towards that Jade Harley, frantically throwing marbles everywhere and teleporting Werewolves higher into the air than they could survive falling without being stun locked._

_"Do not react, but Listen Closely, Five Claw," she whispered to Harley, "there is not much time and there is much Ezabi must say."_   
_Harley eyed the cat._   
_"Ezabi must go now, but she departs telling you this," The cat watched for an opening in the thick crowd of Werewolves. "Today, this one spares you from the fate she earned in her reality. Make the most of it, Walker! May your claws be ever sharp!"_   
_And with that, the cat ran across the floor- weaving between the battle, and then leaping into the oldest of the Hunting Ground Portals._   
_Harley watched in astonishment as the cat warped mid transit, becoming humanoid- becoming a Jade Harley once again. She had the wolf ears and tail that Harley knew awaited her, but there was something stranger. The ears and tail of a cat were upon that Jade's head, extraneously._

_That one called Ezabi gave a pained smile and a wave, then, determinedly, ran off into the Hunting Grounds..._

* * *

  
**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 4TH, 2013.**

Hills and mountains faded into view for the Kiramagers as they linked in after Aleshay to the age known as The Reach.  
  
If Releeshahn was a mountainous realm of bright greens and bright blues, the Reach was a more muted realm. Darker greens, deeper blues, and craggy, grey clouds covering everything it could.  
  
“Welcome to The Reach,” Aleshay narrated once Gray had linked in after the Kiramagers. “Named so by the locals for the way the land itself reaches upwards into the heavens, grabbing at and piercing through the sky.”  
  
“It’s amazing,” Harley said, gazing around the valleys and hills.   
  
“It’s definitely something,” Gray said, frowning as she looked at everything. “I wouldn’t know it was inhabited at first glance.”  
  
“This valley was left untouched for long since before my family first linked to the age,” Aleshay explained. “Spirits and other mystical beings in their mythology use it as a passing ground between one world and the next- that the Descriptive Book latched to here as its landing point was something of a certainty, or so I was told.”   
  
Aleshay lead them towards a well concealed path in the underbrush.   
  
She paused, reaching for a bell, and ringing it once, twice, thrice, a pause, then, she struck it two more times. “The pattern my family uses to announce our arrivals,” she explained when Equius looked like he was about to ask.  
  
“I see,” he nodded, understanding.  
  
They carried on down the road- it wasn’t much longer before a hunting party met them along the road. Humanoid folk- wearing furs and leathers, and headdress-masks made out of animal skulls, deer and wolves primarily.  
  
They seemed intensely and acutely aware of the Kiramagers, and their floating gemstone partners, and looked to Aleshay in silent questioning as she spoke to them in a language that the Kiramagers didn’t catch- because they hadn’t traveled here via Stargate.   
  
It sounded like a mix of D’ni and whatever this other language was, however, considering they caught snipits of words that made sense.  
  
“???--Visitors from--???” She explained. “??--Seeking to-- ???? -- Elders of --??????”  
  
One of the hunters nodded, understanding, and spoke in turn, in the same strange mix of the normal language and D’ni- though, the Kiramagers couldn’t understand anything until the hunter said a single name in the middle of the sentence.  
  
Harley froze upon hearing the name, and asked- “Excuse me, did he say ‘Hircine’?”  
  
Aleshay turned to the Green Kiramager and nodded, “They say Hircine sent them a dream this morning, to expect you all.” She seemed oddly bemused. “Strange, in all the times I’ve visited, that spirit of theirs has never once warned them of my arrival. I’d thought it a superstition, but...”  
  
“Is there anything else to that message?” Tomo asked, frowning. “Did Hircine say anything else to them?”  
  
Aleshay asked, and got a response. “Yes, actually. They say Hircine has requested an audience with you as well.” She seemed startled. “What is going on here, Rangers?”  
  
Gray was the one who answered, “That’s a long story, Aleshay. A very long story. I’ll fill you in on the summary details on the way into the village.”  
  


* * *

**o < [\--- STARGATE: ATLANTIS ---](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0K2bRdtGlg) >o**

* * *

They entered the village, known as Karthwasten, and the Kiramagers group were brought towards a shrine in a small cave on the outskirts of the city.  
  
Here, they were lead underground, past glowing mushrooms of a familiar orange and blue hue.  
  
Harley swallowed down her trepidation as they came to a stone carved relief of a Stargate at the very end of the cave.  
  
“Oh what the-?” Aleshay muttered. “That’s new.”  
  
“Within the last twelve years new?” Gray asked.  
  
“Within the last eight,” Aleshay clarified. “I’ve never even described a Stargate to them before. How could they-?”  
  
Harley stepped forwards, separating from her team a bit, as she approached the carved Stargate.  
  
She took a breath, and called out, “Ezabi! We’re here!”  
  
The room rumbled, and the stargate’s false chevrons began to glow as the crystals inside pulsed with magical energy.  
  
“What the...?” Mahha asked. “What’s going on...?”  
  
“The energy levels in here just shot up like crazy,” Fiya muttered.  
  
The chevrons finished locking, but instead of a kawoosh of energy, reality seemed to warp backwards, as if a cloth curtain was being pulled away from a window and then dragged aside with a ripping, sundering tear.  
  
A swirl of magic spiraled before them all for several long moments, and then it stabilized into a view of orange and blue and twilight lit landscapes.  
  
Those who knew it as The Hunting Grounds stared on with a tense air of apprehension. Those who did not- Harry, Mabushiina, and the Kiramei Stones- could only gasp at the exotic, impossible beauty of the world before them.  
  
“What a wonder world...” Harry said quietly.  
  
And then, a woman stepped into view. Most striking of all features were the dual sets of feline and lupine features- a double set of wolf and cat ears, and two paradoxical tails.  
  
Otherwise, though, she was the spitting, twin image of Harley Jade Sheppard- once named Jade Harley- just with much longer hair, and clad in clothes that could best be described as “The Primal Aesthetic of the Gods,” as well as being a few years older.  
  
The natives of the age all bowed in reverence, muttering the name “Hircine” in awe and wonder.  
  
Harley just quirked a faint smile, and said, “You Mantled him.”  
  
“This one did,” her mirror twin quirked a smile. “And he cried like a whelp the entire time.”  
  
With only a brief glance at the Stone framework as warning, the woman who had mantled the Daedric Prince Hircine then stepped across the vortex into the other world.  
  
Reality rippled as she stepped over, much like a Stargate’s eventhorizon, or maybe something passing through the wall of a bubble.   
  
But she was there, standing before them, a genuinely warm smile on her face. “Hello, everyone. This one hopes you don’t mind her intrusion.”  
  
Harley ran forwards and hugged her alternate reality self without a moment’s pause.  
  


* * *

  
Ridley’s robotic body dispelled the visual disguise of a human shell, and Lothor carefully extracted the card from within her body a moment later- it was cracked in a place, but otherwise intact. Miraculously, Lothor thought with a tired smile.  
  
He carried the card over to the area where Iyo Kodera’s body floated in golden energies, and handed the card to Gilgamesh.  
  
The Wraith-bound Spirit eyed the card, then carefully laid it down over the heart of the body before them.  
  
“Soul Card, Set,” He intoned. “INSTALL.”  
  
The Card’s life force energies were then brutally ejected from within its surface into the living body- merging the soul data of the one known as Ridley with that of the being known as Escape within the vessel whose soul had long since been removed.  
  
The body gasped for air as new life flooded into every molecular inch of its existence.  
  
Lothor could only watch on, praying for the best results for his Niece’s future.  
  


* * *

  
“Ah, this one should probably rectify the language issue,” Hircine said, snapping her fingers, and... while nothing visibly changed, audibly, the previously unintelligible language of the locals came into sharp, crystal clear focus for the people who had never been to this age before.  
  
“-It’s seriously Hircine!”  
  
“And she looks like the girl in green too?”  
  
“We truly are blessed today!”  
  
Harley chuckled at her alternate self’s carefree manipulation of reality as the lot of them exited the cave, out into the village proper. “So... how’s life been treating you?”  
  
“This one cannot complain,” Hircine replied. “It was a sad existence at first, however, she was able to meet up with the spirits of her own timeline’s friends again after some effort and hunting around the remnants.” She smiled. “Now it is not so sad, but very happy times.”  
  
“That’s good to hear,” Harley smiled back. “That’s really good to hear.”  
  


* * *

  
Meanwhile a bit further back into the group, Harry quietly remarked, “Is anyone else horribly confused by all of this all of a sudden, or is it just me?”  
  
“I’m a bit lost myself,” Mabushiina said.  
  
“Even on Athos we heard the stories Gray explained on the way over,” Atsuya said. “Earth attacked by Hircine’s beasts of the Hunting Grounds. Only to have their advance suddenly stopped out of nowhere. Everyone assumed that someone had taken out Hircine himself, after a while.”  
  
“Pretty much,” Tomo nodded. “We were right there in the thick of it when the wolves attacked the mall. We were fighting back, and then Harley starts shouting after this cat that ran through a rift, and then a little bit later, it all just stopped.”  
  
“Harley told us later that it was an alternate version of herself who disguised herself as a cat somehow,” Nepeta said, looking at the other version of their teammate standing there chatting away with a relative ease. “She guessed that that other version of her was the one who took out Hircine’s forces, but...”  
  
“We never knew for sure until now,” Equius nodded.  
  
“What a crazy coincidence,” Mabushiina stared on, astonished, “to run into her like this?”  
  
“It’s something stretching the bounds of credibility, that’s for sure,” Gray mused. “But then again, considering everything we went through in those Hunting Grounds... It’s not the most astonishing coincidence. It likely would’ve happened eventually.” 

* * *

The people of the village of Karthwasten who weren’t actively hunters or wearing hunters garb in that moment looked just like any average village of people would. Their leathers and furs were more comfortable looking and looked like they were designed less for being out in the wilderness. Honestly, if not for the varied facial and body paints that peeked out here and there, one would just assume this was just another Athosian settlement with how it was laid out.  
  
Well, that was Atsuya’s take, at any rate. It felt like home. The tents and the log based buildings that existed as houses were familiar in their rustic-ness.   
  
Really, the only major standout- body paints aside- that Atsuya could spot at a glance was how there was a very clear and heavy worship towards spirit-gods-- most prominent of them Hircine herself.   
  
Said alternate version of his teammate was gazing up at a statue representing a wolf-headed woman with a cat tail, as if trying to gauge how accurate it was to life.   
  
“Yes,” She said finally, “This one does not know what she was thinking with that specific combination. Only one set of ears and tail? This one felt very restricted that day.”  
  
Or she could be reminiscing on something Atsuya had no measuring stick for.  
  
What Atsuya could measure, however, was how the people where were looking at them all and whispering about “Hircine’s Chosen” and... yeah. That was sure to become an issue sooner or later.  
  
Hopefully they’d get what they needed and got out of here before the people here started worshipping them as gods. Because that would just be a pain to deal with.  
  
Needless to say, Hircine accompanied them to the Elder’s meeting place, and Tomo felt conflicted, a bit, as Whatever Natural Flow to events could have happened here was pretty thoroughly derailed.   
  
Hircine- this other, alternate, future adjacent version of Harley- was explaining their mission without giving them room to state it for themselves. Explaining it almost entirely accurately, yes, but still...  
  
“They need to complete the Hunt this one has set them on,” Hircine had that look in her eyes that Tomo knew well from Harley’s own rare, mildly panicked ‘I’m making this up as I go along’ expressions. “And for that, they need the fragment of stone left behind by Aleshay’s mother.”  
  
Tomo was expecting a curve ball of some kind. A ‘prove it with a trial’ sort of thing. Something to state for the record that something was going to be a lot harder than it had any right being...  
  
And then the Elders asked- “Would they also be interested in a similar stone a stranger to our lands left a neighboring village some time ago?”  
  
Tomo wasn’t expecting that.  
  
Equius could feel Jetta vibrating in his arms as they explained the story- a stranger had come from a distant land, a man wearing a uniform of blue, with a symbol they drew, matching the Overdrive emblem.  
  
They talked about how the man stayed in their realm for some time, traveling village to village, but always returning to the same one he had entrusted a large blue stone to.   
  
The story went that the man had been asked by a village to rescue a boy who had been trying to unearth an old statue relic out in the forest, and had been missing for some days. The man had gone out, rescued the boy, and returned, then went out to finish the job.  
  
However, the boy had reported that a Knight had been seen stalking them in the forest. Dark purple and silvers- themed after a wolf, carrying a sword and shield.  
  
The man had never been seen again after he’d tried uncovering the rest of the statue.  
  
Could their luck really have been so incredible?  
  
But no, it wouldn’t. The village they were seeking was on the far, FAR side of the river valley that made up the Reach. It would be days of walking on foot- shorter by air if they dared use the Mashin- but they would need a guide to make introductions. A guide who was native, because this village had never met anyone from the outside worlds before.   
  
Nepeta realized where this was going when one of the elders volunteered her own granddaughter to be their guide. A young girl about their age, with pale blond, almost silvery-gold hair, with piercing blue eyes that shone like the Kiramei Stones they were after.  
  
More than that, Nepeta realized what was going on here with the way she kept blushing whenever she looked in Harry’s direction. Matters of the heart were easy to guess whenever things like this cropped up.   
  
It was the Abydos situation all over again. They were here as travelers from another world, marked as envoys of an actual god like being, and here they were being presented with a girl to aid them in their quest... It was almost expected that one of the Kiramagers was sure to take an interest if the girl didn’t already have her eyes set on one of them.  
  
And here was history rhyming again trying to set Harry up as the Daniel to this mission’s Sha’re, the way that girl was eyeing him.  
  
Harry, for his part, had noticed.  
  
He’d seen some girls at school eyeing him that way over the years just because of who his parents were- seen some boys eyeing Sally the same way too. Though they were the not so subtle ones. More often than not it was the girls eyeing Sally back at school with much more veiled ambitions of romance- and while Harry was flattered when the guys looked his way That Way Too, that was not the kind of look from someone Harry ever wanted to start a relationship with, male or female.   
  
Oh, she was cute, he’d give her that much credit, but what were the chances he’d EVER run into her in person again after this?   
  
Suddenly, Harry felt a bolt run through the core of his body- the core of Kiramei Stone that tended to settle deep inside after he’d transformed into Gigant Driller for a battle and would spread out across his body again in the following hours.  
  
It was as if the remnants of that original stone that had shattered into chunks and merged into different bodies- his only just a third- had some remnant of an idea. If Mei had retained her memories then maybe she'd actually have a better idea and _he could ask her what-_  
  
"Thank you for letting me assist you," The girl said.  
  
 _-that even could possibly-_  
  
"My name is Runame." Pronounced 'Ruu-Nah-Mei.'  
  
 _...Mean?_  
  
The girl's name finally was said, and Harry felt a second bolt of energy run through that Kiramei stone.   
  
'Shit.' Harry thought with a mild whimper as his ears folded back against his skull.  
  
This whole situation was another time loop, wasn't it?  
  
From the way Hircine turned to eye him with a wry smirk- Harry got his answer without another word being spoken.  
  


* * *

  
Out in the normal universe of this story, divested of current events by a couple of Linking Books, the Go-Busters knelt in a small outpost overlooking a frozen, frost covered town on a random world in the Milky Way Galaxy- having already changed worlds once already from the first one that they'd gone to.   
  
It hadn't been frost covered until just this afternoon, when Flurious' coalition of badguys had grouped up here to freeze over a whole settlement, after having done so to another one already.  
  
The Overdrives and Mystics were presently fighting past an army of giant snow themed monsters.  
  
Meanwhile, the ToQGers were battling off in the distance with their zords against a mountain sized chunk of moving ice-rock.  
  
The Go-Busters were observing the scene for the moment, trying to deduce where exactly Flurious' encampment was at the moment.  
  
Ryuuji, Hiromu, and Youko were peering out into the wilderness with bioculars, and J was keeping lookout for any minions that might try to harass them.   
  
Mei was supposed to be doing the same, actually, but she'd gotten distracted for the moment by a strange feeling of resonance within the Kiramei Stone making up her body.  
  
"Something's about to happen," she realized quietly.  
  
And indeed, prophetically, but unrelated to what she was predicting, Ryujii gasped- "Contact! I've spotted Flurious. He's moving south-east towards the river from the town hall."  
  
"Confirmed," Hiromu said a moment later.  
  
"Double confirmed," Youko nodded, seconds after him.  
  
"Let's go," J decided.  
  
The Go-Busters moved on as fast as they could, as stealthily as they could.  
  


* * *

  
With Mabushiin and Gray staying behind in the village with Aleshay, the Kiramagers headed out along the well marked road in the ground along side the river, following behind Runame, as she talked about random facts about the plants and wildlife they saw as they walked.  
  
The decision to avoid the air was one the team had decided on. On foot would be slower, but nobody wanted the locals to see, say, Zabyun, coursing through the air and declare him a new spirit/god/daedra/demon or whatever.  
  
Unknown to the group, however, a knightly figure in dark purple was observing them from afar- the other side of the river, in fact. They would not see him until he wished to be seen.  
  
"New travelers," Korrag mused. "It seems I lucked out on this return trip. Just as I was hopping for- visitors from another world heading for the village that Jaxton no doubt hid the stone in."  
  
He summoned his horse, Catastros, and they road silently after the Kiramagers.  
  
He would not let his impatience get to him this time.  
  


* * *

  
A caw in the air made Harley look upwards. "What's that?" She pointed at the shadowy outline of a bird circling in the air.  
  
"Oh, what fortune," Runame said, clasping her hands and giving a short prayer. "A phoenix bird!"  
  
"A Phoenix?" Atsuya asked.   
  
"They rarely arrive to bless travelers on their journeys," Runame explained. "The sighting of one means that you are on course to your best possible future."  
  
"I wouldn't go that far," Fiya muttered from Atsuya's morpher, hidden away like the other stones were. "The last time any of us Stones saw one was when we died."  
  
"Oh, yes, that's true," Runame considered. "They can be considered bad omens, in that case. But they tend to be more signs of trialing times ahead- but generally Phoenix Birds are positive omens of good times on the other side of those trials."   
  
"Let's just be ready to morph, just in case," Atsuya said.

"Agreed," Equius nodded.  
  
They carried on, though Harley frowned, watching the bird circle overhead. "That noise though... doesn't it sound like Ally?"  
  
"Miko's pet turkey bird?" Tomo asked.  
  
Harley nodded.  
  


* * *

  
"CAAAAAW!" Said Phoenix Bird swooped through the air, ignited on golden fire as Miko rode her through swaths of ice-made minions, melting them rapidly.  
  


* * *

  
"Eh," Tomo frowned. "I mean, I guess I can kind of hear it."  
  
"I wonder if we'll ever find out how that whole sequence of events turned out?" Mahha asked from within Harley's morpher. "To face against Korrag like that..."  
  
"Hrm," Harry had a thought, and spun his Moprher. _ **_"KIRAMEI SEARCHING!"_**_  
  
"Treasure hunting while we hike?" Nepeta asked of him as the morpher timed out with an error.  
  
"Yeah," Harry nodded, "I was wondering if we might wind up running into a Kanaema Stone out here, too."  
  
"You think we'd be That Lucky?" Harley asked.  
  
"We're already two stones into That Hunt," Harry said. "Might as well give it a try just in case, right?"  
  
"Fair enough, I guess," Harley nodded.  
  
"Can't argue with that," Equius agreed.  
  
"What is a Kanaema Stone?" Runame asked, looking over her shoulder at Harry.   
  
"They're... a different kind of stone to the one we're going after," Atsuya explained. "Individually they have great powers, but bring all of them together, they can perform miracles."  
  
"Oh, you speak of the Legend of the Guardian Stones, don't you?" Runame asked.  
  
"Why am I not surprised?" Harry asked, frowning, and striking at his Morpher again. _ **_"KIRAMEI SEARCHING!"_**_  
  
"What's the legend of the Guardian Stones?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"Legend goes..." Runame began...

* * *

 _["In ancient times, there were four guaridans of the roots, binding the worlds together. These four guardians were the Guardians of the Seasons, and the Directions."]_  
  
Shadowy images of titan like megazords appeared upon a stone wall- three of them vaguely looked almost like Kiramagein, Zabyun Express, and Gigant Driller- except wildly stylized.  
  
 _["The Warrior of the North- The Destroyer."]_  
  
The Gigant Driller-like shadow moved, spinning its drill arm into the heavens, and spreading angled, sharp and pointed wings from behind its back.  
  
 _["The Warrior of the East- The Swift."]_  
  
The Zabyun Express-like shadow struck several fluid poses, water flowing around it, defying gravity with each fluid motion.  
  
 _["The Warrior of the South- The Exiled."]_  
  
The unknown shadow twirled two axe weapons as flames erupted behind it, forming like bird wings over its shoulders.  
  
 _["The Warrior of the West- The Harrier."]_  
  
The Kiramagein like shadow drew its sword, and readied its shield, standing its ground.  
  
 _["Together, these four protected the worlds from devastation, protecting all people within all nations..."]_  
  
The four titans stood against a rotating collage of enemies- shaped after the Jamenju the Kiramagers had fought so far.  
  


* * *

  
"This is sort of sounding a bit like the legends of Crystalia," Esprez said from Harley's morpher.   
  
"It does?" Runame asked.  
  
"We had four titans of legend," Esprez said. "The form I took with Jouki on Crystalia was what the King came to call the Speed Titan, named after one of the four, for the fact that our speed was unrivaled at the time. And generally still is, whenever Mabayuine and I combine with Zabyun."  
  
"Speed Titan..." Harley mused. "That matches the one called 'The Swift', doesn't it?"  
  
"The Destroyer sounds like Destoria for sure, though," Tomo frowned. "What about the others? Do they match the same?"  
  
"Not really, no," Esprez said. "For example, the third one in the sequence for Crystalia is the Advisor Titan, not the Exiled."   
  
"Yeah," Fiya said. "Hakobu had that title for whenever he had a rare partner who could work with him, if I remember right."  
  
"So different, but the same," Shovellow remarked.  
  
"It sounds generally the same so far beyond those differences, yes," Esprez agreed.  
  
"Please continue, Runame," Atsuya said.  
  
The girl nodded, "Each Guardian had their own power, capable of standing against any threat on their own... However, when the time came that they could not defeat an enemy alone... The four came together as one force."

* * *

  
_["It was said that when the four Guardians sparkled in the heavens, shooting through the skies like rocketing stars of fortune, that miracles would happen."]_

The four transformed into orbs of energy, circling eachother, and leaving sparkling trails of energy behind them- before combining together into a giant circle and unleashing a powerful blast upon their enemies.  
  
 _["And when worlds fell to devastation, it was said that these sparkling warriors..."]_  
  
A splintered, fractured world began to drift back together under the guided power of the four Kanaema Stones.  
  
 _["Their bright sparkles- their glimmering potential-"]_  
  
The world came together, still fractured, but then flashing with solid light and life energy as it became whole once more.  
  


* * *

  
"They're the ones who could change the future," Heliko finished for the Reach girl, speaking from Nepeta's morpher.  
  
Runame nodded. "That is how it ends, yes."  
  
"That's how our own history goes whenever it talks about Kiramagers," Heliko explained.   
  


* * *

  
_["When People Shine, Miracles are Born," Fiya took over from there, Narrating.]_  
  
Flurious' fellow Generals were shot from behind, and they all whirled around to see the Go-Busters standing there, weapons drawn and charging for another volley of blasts.  
  
 _["Kiramental, the Proof of Warriors who can Change The Future."]_  
  
The Mystics and Overdrives stood triumphant as the frozen monsters exploded behind them- and behind even them- the giant ice monster shattered under the powerful blow of Cho Cho ToQDaioh.  
  


* * *

  
"Kiramagers, warriors who sparkle," Atsuya mused. "It all comes together somehow, doesn't it?"  
  


* * *

  
"Power. Rangers." Flurious declared, snarly, as he found himself alone in a frozen over quarry along with about half of his remaining fellow generals, surrounded on all sides by Ranger Teams. "After dealing a death blow to my brother, Moltor, and so many others, you just can't let our conquest be in peace?"  
  
"Sorry," Miko shook her head and gave a shrug. "We're not in the department of letting bad guys get away with hurting people in this galaxy."  
  
"And your reign of terror has lasted far, FAR too long," Sally declared.  
  
"It's time to end your nightmares!" Casey shouted.  
  
"Surrender now, help us defeat Gilgamesh, and we will let you live," Hiromu declared. "Refuse, and die."  
  
Flurious snarled. "Never."  
  
His surviving Generals readily agreed.  
  
"Well, that's your funerals, then," Miko said with a bit of nonchalance. "Literally."  
  
The battle resumed, to predictably explosive ends.  
  


* * *

  
Hours along the road, the sun began to set in the Reach- a day night cycle that was definitely offset from what everyone else was used to.  
  
Runame lead them to a small underground cave, containing some warm, bubbling hot springs inside, just off the road they were traveling on. This was where they set up camp for the night.  
  
"We're about half way to Lost Vale," Runame explained as camping gear was set out. "Stopping overnight is our best bet instead of pushing to morning."  
  
"Why's that?" Harley asked.  
  
"The Night Time is when the wild things come out at night," Runame explained. "Werewolves with loose control the Gift of Hircine are the most frequent threat, but they tend to leave settlements and caves like this alone due to the protection of those who do have their control set firm." As she said so, as if teasing, she loosened part of her belt from behind to allow room for a wolf tail to form through as she spoke. Similarly, a pair of small ears sprouted from the top of her head. "Such as me, though I suspect they'd leave us alone due to the scents of two other wolves here as well."   
  
Harry and Harley chuckled at that.  
  
"Are werewolves with bad control common here?" Equius asked.  
  
"They used to be more common before the Change of Hircine," Runame explained.   
  
"Ezabi's Mantling a few years ago," Harley nodded.

"Yes," Runame nodded. "After that, only those who still worshipped the old Hircine and refused to accept the new form still retain poor control. Those who accepted our new Spirit's form gained better control."  
  
"Seems about right if you ask me," Tomo remarked.  
  
"Still, even then, I've been told it was much worse before the Shattering," Runame agreed.  
  
"The... Shattering??" Atsuya asked.  
  
"...Oh, right, I didn't finish telling the story of the Guardian Stones, did I?" Runame asked, tilting her head to one side.   
  
"We did get kind of distracted with the Kanaema Stone derail," Nepeta acknowledged.  
  
"The tale goes that a tragedy overcame this world, once called by a name long forgotten," Runame explained. "There were those who sought to destroy the world and all in it, and so a towering giant made of Brass was awakened. And at their command, it began to ravage the continent- shattering everything under it into pieces as it merely walked."   
  
"What a horrible tragedy," Harry said.   
  
"It was." Runame nodded. "All would have been lost had the Guardians not arrived, and combined their powers to defeat it. However, after defeating the Brass Walk, the guardians realized the reason for the Shattering had been one of a resolute inability of some to ever get along with the others of this world- for the mad ones then turned their attention towards the Guardians, seeking to destroy them utterly before they could mend the damage to the world."   
  
"They really sought to destroy everything that much?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"They did," Runame said. "The Guardians were said to have transformed the mad ones utterly with their next feat of power, stripping their souls from their bodies and casting them into the Void between Voids, contained within vessel shells that would never allow them to interfere with any world again."   
  
The Kiramagers looked at each other- and then the Kiramei Stones decaptchalogued themselves.  
  
"You guys don't happen to think...?" Fiya began.  
  
"Madam," Mahha began, "Those 'vessels' they were cast into wouldn't happen to be Card shaped, would they?"  
  
"Cards?" Runame asked. "As in flat, square, pieces of board?"  
  
"Basically," Mahha nodded.  
  
"No, the vessels they were entraped within were prized possessions," Runame said. "For even as the Mad Ones rejected the mortal and physical realms, they each had personal belongings that identified them each. A personal weapon, or a specific article of clothing, for example."   
  
"Treasures, basically?" Shovellow asked.  
  
"Yes, essentially," Runame nodded.  
  
"Moving on from that," Esprez said. "What happened to the Guardians?"  
  
Runame nodded, recollected her place, and then explained, "Having used their miraculous power for mending worlds instead on casting adrift those who had caused it, the Guardians were spent, and were forced to scatter to recover their energies until they could properly reunite this world and heal the damages." She paused. "But in the mean time, those who could co-operate with eachother- the survivors of the shattering- were left to reforge the land back together into a cohesive whole despite the damage done to the world. And that's the end of the Legend."  
  
"Where do the lands of the Reach fall into that?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"That's a longer story going back long before even the Shattering," Runame said. "Even I do not know everything about it." She then blinked. "Oh, but you mean in the present, right?"  
  
Atsuya nodded, "Yes."  
  
"The Reach is an independent coalition of clans," Runame explained. "We each have our own lives, and while we work together as a nation, we're not ruled by any one King. Still, we work with the other neighboring countries where and when we can. Even our closest neighbors, the Nords to the north and east, who once invaded us time and time again over the course of history." She gave a smile. "It all became forgotten in the aftermath of the Shattering. We all had a common enemy to be prepared for if they ever returned from the Guardian's exile."  
  
"Well," Harry said, "I think that's certainly a lot to think about."  
  
"And I say," Nepeta clapped her hands, "we think on all of that while getting cleaned up in the springs. Because I don't know about you all, but a whole day of walking, fighting, and walking again has me feeling like I need a bath."  
  
"That is typically what this camp site is used for," Runame offered as everyone else nodded in agreement to Nepeta's statement.  
  


* * *

They went down to the springs itself and...  
  
"We might have to do two or three rounds," Nepeta mused. "It doesn't look like it'd fit even half of us at once."  
  
"There's an uneven number of us anyways so I'll go last," Harry said, apologetic. "After the last time when I lost my Morpher to a colapsing bath house, I'd rather someone be on guard. Just in case."  
  
"While we appreciate your volunteering," Equius said, "I've got a better idea to decide who goes when."  
  
"And what's that?" Atsuya asked.  
  
Equius held up a fist, and declared, "Rock Paper Scissors!"  
  


* * *

  
Unsurprisingly, Tomo and Harley won the first round and went together.  
  
"So, it's not a coincidence that from everything we've been able to gather from Archer and Lilly to the SGC encounters, to who knows what else I'm forgetting right now, that Gilgamesh was a guy who collected tons of fantastic treasures in a pocket dimension," Harley mused as she scrubbed some dirt out of Tomo's wings. "And then we come here and find out that there was a whole group of people who got their souls imprisioned in a void for trying to destroy a world. Right? No coincidences here?"  
  
Tomo sighed. "Yeah, it's pretty obvious either Gilgamesh was one of them, or he found them out in the void when he got exiled because of Guardian Jade's super weapon, just like he did with Enter's card."  
  
"Why does it feel like everything's coming together here?" Harley asked, frowning. "Like we're about to enter some big end game and now we're in the final lore dump before everything comes together?"  
  
"I thought I was the one who made the gaming references around here?" Tomo joked, trying to lighten the mood.   
  
Harley giggled. "You don't got an exclusive right on it just like I don't have an exclusive right on track and field jokes."

"Fair enough," Tomo smiled.  
  


* * *

  
Equius and Atsuya wound up winning the next round, much to Nepeta's displeasure- both for the win delaying her own bath, but also because she didn't get to spend it with Atsuya like Tomo and Harley had gotten to do.  
  
Atsuya was theorizing, "I think we're getting to a point where we're we're going to have to use Reversia to go back to Crystalia soon."  
  
"That would make sense," Equius agreed. "It does feel vaguely like we're running low on time to complete that loop."  
  
"Hopefully we won't be pushing it to the last minute," Atsuya said, frowning, "But I've got a strange feeling if we don't do it soon, we might not get a chance to do it at all."  
  


* * *

  
Nepeta refused to even do a rock paper scissors round for the final bath and just declared that it would be her, Runame, and Harry.   
  
Everyone else just assumed she refused to wait a minute longer to have a proper bath, and didn't even suspect she might be intending to act as a Chapperone.  
  
Because she was. Nepeta was angling to prevent any fishy business that Runame might have been pressured into by the village of Karthwasten, if any pressure had been applied at all.  
  
Which Nepeta was slightly sure that there must have been, because even with Harry being a perfect gentleman and keeping his back to the two girls, Runame still seemed drawn over to him more often than not.  
  
So, she caved and just said something to the Reach Girl. "Runame? Can I ask you a question?"  
  
"Un," she nodded.   
  
"Did the people in your village pressure you into this escort mission?" Nepeta asked, having chosen her words carefully.  
  
"Oh, no, not at all," Runame said. "I was the one who received the vision from Hircine that you would be arriving. If anyone or anything is presuring me into this mission, it's my own foresight."  
  
Nepeta blinked, not having expected that answer. "You're a Seer?"  
  
Runame considered that for a moment, "I wouldn't say a Seer, so much as the person who receives messages from someone else. After all, it's not something I've frequently had happen to me until just recently, the last few months."  
  
"Well, that's not the most unusual thing," Nepeta said. "Seer Terezi was getting visions of the immediate future of Earth from all the way in the Alternia Galaxy for quite a while, there. Now she's one of the Seers who predicts the future monster attacks with alarming regularity."  
  
"Except for when all the Seers miss something," Harry supposed.  
  
"True," Nepeta mused, then, looking to Runame, asked, "What I'm curious to know is what visions you've been having."  
  
"Mostly visions of your battles, I believe," Runame answered. "Though I've had strange visions separate from them, such as of a strange man trying turn a crystal into a robot, and failing badly enough to make it shatter into three chunks." She paused- "Actually, come to think of it, I believe that was the first vision I had of anything, really."  
  
At that statement, Harry's ears twitched, and though he didn't move an inch from his spot, he asked, "When... was that one exactly?"  
  
"I couldn't say exactly," Runame answered. "Atleast, with respect to our individual world calendars. I know things don't line up between them."  
  
"Rough estimate?" Harry asked.  
  
"Around three or four months ago?" Runame offered.  
  
Harry turned around, much to Nepeta's surprise, but the look on his face stopped any remark she might have had.  
  
Harry looked scared of something.   
  
"Did you see what happened to those stone fragments?" Harry asked- trying to keep his voice level.  
  
Runame nodded. "You absorbed a large portion of it."  
  
Harry transformed his right arm- crystal skin forming across it as he offered his hand out to her. "Please, tell me what you see when you hold my hand?"  
  
Runame did such without hesitation, and---  
  
Nepeta FELT reality ripple in some way- a resonance between souls that struck out in some kind of tonal chime into the world- no- all of existance around them- on a substrate level.

Like a tuning fork struck-- A Sharp resonated outwards.   
  
"Oh," Runame said quietly. "I think you have a fragment of my soul stuck inside you."  
  
Harry answered her just as quietly, "I was afraid you'd say that."  
  


* * *

  
Korrag looked across the river as he felt the sharp resonance of a tonal signature rippling out of the cave.  
  
"...What was that?" He asked himself.

* * *

"So, what was that weird vibrating resonance we felt just now?" Fiya asked as everyone regathered by the campfire, cleaned up and dressed for resting in bed. The Kiramei Stones were all gathered, hovering next to their partners where applicable.  
  
"The Kiramei Stone I absorbed, the silver one," Harry said, "It was just one third of the total whole, right? A third went into Jueki, some dust fragments went into the Go-Busters, but the last piece formed a singular new identity, right?"  
  
"Yes, Mei, we never did figure out who she could have been back in Crystalia's day, though. But then again we never did meet every stone in existence so-" Esprez bobbed in the air. "Wait." she froze. "You don't mean-!?"  
  
"Ru-na- _Mei,_ " Nepeta said, looking at the girl, emphasising the last syllable of her name.   
  
"She's a reincarnated stone like we are!" Heliko gasped.  
  
"Mei's been trying to piece together who she might have been in a past life after learning about that," Harry explained.   
  
"It makes some degree of sense, considering we never could piece together her identity either," Fiya said. "Silver Stones were rare, especially ones who displayed personalities. But a reincarnation...? Suddenly things start making sense a bit more."  
  
"It also completes a set," Atsuya mused. "Five of the Six Kiramagers having Mashin partners who reincarnated from murdered Rangers? But the sixth ranger becomes his own stone instead?"  
  
"It does feel a bit like a pattern was disrupted," Harley agreed.  
  
"That still doesn't answer what the resonance we felt was?" Shovellow asked.  
  
"That was me recongizing a fragment of my soul caught within the stone inside of Harry's body," Runame said. "I think that's how I've been seeing events, as well."  
  
"Wait, you're a Seer?" Mahha asked.  
  
"I think I get what she means, actually," Jetta said. "Alternate selves aren't anything new, because they splinter off naturally, but this isn't that kind of situation. It's a splintering issue. Like calls to like because it's broken apart, but when you add time travel into it, then you've got resonance between a whole part and a broken part."  
  
"That's surprisingly well spoken, Jetta," Equius said.  
  
"I'm not just a pretty face that goes woosh, Aniki!" Jetta remarked, bobbing up in the air excitedly.  
  
"I'm not quite sure what's all going on still," Mabayuine said, wobbling from where she sat. "But if the issue is the matter of the soul being divided, then we should be able to pull any fragments out of the remaining stone shards and put them into where-ever the main consciousness of the rest of the soul is seated."  
  
"Restoring Mei like we did me," Esprez nodded. "Or, well, a more splintered verison of pulling you out of that crown, or transferring Zabyun around."  
  
"I still find this whole thing weird," Zabyun said. "Souls shouldn't bop around like mad in adventures like this! Not that I'm not glad that we Kiramei Stones can cheat death like that, but... It's still weird."  
  
"Soul Transmigration can still go wrong if done improperly," Mabayuine grouched. "Like the fact my Husband had me go into my crown instead of a proper Kiramei Stone! I don't understand how he never realized what had happened sooner! Leaving my poor daughter without a mother for so many years! For shame, Oladdin!"  
  
"Speaking of Mabushiina, we should call back to Karthwasten and let them know we've stopped for the night," Atsuya said, raising his Morpher.  
  


* * *

  
Gray sighed as her KI Buzzed, and she made her excuses from the wild, boastful tale Hircine was telling to the many villagers, which had also enraptured Mabushiin and Aleshay, to go outside. Once outside of the festive building, she opened a the KI's communications screen. "Kiramagers, what's the situation?"  
  
"We've stopped for the night in a cave," Atsuya reported. "We'll be heading out on the road again in the local morning."  
  
"Alright," Gray nodded. "I'll pass a message along back to Atlantis so your parents can be notified."  
  
"Thank you," Atsuya nodded, and... hesitated. "Misses Gray?"  
  
"Yes, Jurul?" Gray asked.   
  
"Could you help us relay a message to Mei, on the Go-Busters team?" Atsuya asked.  
  


* * *

  
Mei felt like she should wince in sympathy as Doctor Janet Fraiser stitched up a small gash on Hiromu's forehead.  
  
"Now, how exactly did you get this again?" Janet asked.  
  
Hiromu sighed, while Ryujii and Youko giggled at his misfortune, as he admitted, "I tripped on the way back to the Stargate because a bunch of wild chickens walked infront of our path."  
  
Beet J. Stag chose that moment to enter the Atlantis Infirmary, announcing, "Mei, you have a message from the Kiramagers. Secure Line Transmission in the Hologram Room."  
  
"I do?" She asked. "What's it about?"  
  
"Don't know. It's Your ears only," J answered.  
  
Mei looked between her teammates, and Hiromu said, "Go, I'll be fi-AOWH!?" He yelped as Janet dabbed an alcohol swab against his face.   
  


* * *

  
Mei entered the Atlantis Hologram Room, where a slightly static covered hologram of Artoria Gray stood.   
  
"I'm here as you asked," Mei reported.  
  
 _"Good,"_ Gray nodded. _"I'm having to serve as a relay since the Age we're on doesn't have a standardized transponder for boosting the signal from the Kiramager's morphers yet. I'll apologize in advance for any loss in signal quality."_  
  
Mei nodded, "Understood."  
  
Gray tapped at her KI, then her hologram flickered out. A moment later, Harry was in her place, kneeling on the ground, and looking a tad nervous.  
  
 _"Hello, Mei,"_ He greeted.  
  
"Hello, Harry," Mei greeted in turn. "There must be something important to arrange a long distance Call like this."  
  


* * *

  
Harry's Shiny Kiramei Changer was producing a rather small hologram of Mei onto a small rock pile in the cave, at the very least so that she was at eye level with Harry.   
  
"We ran into someone here we think might be tied to your past life," Harry began explaining. "Does the name Runame mean any...thing--?"  
  
He didn't need to finish the sentence, Mei swayed on her feet as soon as he said the name.  
  


* * *

  
"Oh. That's..." She put a crystal hand to her head. "Yes. That name does sound very familiar. Nostalgically so. Like a piece of the puzzle that's missing, but I don't... I still can't place more of it?"  
  
Harry gave a tense smile. _"There's a reason for that, as far as we can tell."_  
  
"And what is it?" Mei asked, her eyes glowing off and on, simulating a blink.   
  
_"We think your soul- the one that was housed in the Silver Kiramei Stone- got shattered into fragments when Enter performed that experiment on you,"_ Harry explained. _"A part of it was retained inside of the you that first formed- probably more of it was absorbed when we were in that cave together."_  
  
"That would make sense," Mei paused. "And a fragment may have been stored away inside you?"  
  
 _"Yeah,"_ Harry grimaced slightly. _"We'll also need to check the rest of your Team to see if anything's been stored away inside them, but... for me? Yes. We figured out there's an extra soul fragment in me, tied to the Kiramei Stone in me. Probably not enough to be a proper identity that could function on its own, though."_  
  
"That's right, you didn't swap bodies with the rest of your team when they were swapped around, did you?" Mei asked.  
  
Harry blinked. _"I honestly hadn't thought of that, but... Yeah, that makes sense."_  
  
"So we'll have to see about restoring that fragment of soul to me to see what reforms, I suppose," Mei crossed her arms, feeling suddenly so very cold and so very warm all at the same time.  
  
 _"There's one other thing, too,"_ Harry said, shifting over to the side, and motioning for someone to sit down next to him.  
  
And then Mei watched as an impossibly familiar face belonging to an impossibly familiar girl entered the frame- someone who sat down, blue eyes looking forwards and meeting green.  
  
A certain sort of soul-wavelength resonance was shared in that short lived moment of time between the ticks of the clock. It was the sort of feeling that happens when you run into yourself, at different points in time- like the resonance that had been seen earlier, except stronger. Much much stronger.  
  
It was the kind of resonance that said, "No, that's so much more than just a small PIECE of me stuck inside someone else... That actually IS me."  
  
 **"Oh."** Mei and Runame said at the same moment, **"Hello, Mirror."**  
  


* * *

  
Mei staggered out of the Hologram room about half an hour later- the connection had started to frizzle out and they'd called it a nighyt- to find her Teammates waiting for her.  
  
"Well?" Ryujii asked. "How did it go?"  
  
Mei felt her mouth trying to smile- though her face wasn't allowing it at the moment, the wrong musculature- but still, her eyes showed it regardless. "I know my name again. I know where I come from. Even if I can't remember it entirely yet."  
  
"Then Please," J said, standing a bit more upright to attention. "Introduce yourself."  
  
"My name is Runame of Karthwasten, Daughter of the Reach," she said, looking her teammates in the eyes. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintence." She gave a small curtsey that would have worked a lot better if she was wearing a skirt instead of pants. A thought occurred to her. "Oh. I'm going to need to buy skirts now. I remember wearing them! Sort of." She paused, and looked at her hands. "Though maybe that can wait until I can figure out how to reshape my body to look like myself again. I may not have the same measurements afterwards."  
  
Youko smiled, "Well! We'll just have to help you figure that out, then!"  
  
"Welcome to the team," Hiromu said, offering a hand for her to shake. "Runame."  
  
She reached a hand out, and shook his hand. "I... I would still prefer it if you all would call me Mei, however." She giggled. "It sounds much nicer coming from my friends."  
  
"We can do just that, Mei," J said simply.  
  


* * *

  
 **EARTH DATE: JANUARY 5TH, 2013.**  
  
Zabyun had reminded them, early that morning, that he didn't HAVE to fly through the sky to reach their destination. Instead... he could just surface under the waters and muddy bed of the river and ride through it just like he did, riding through the strees of Sardines not too long ago.  
  
Stealth was the name of the game, after all.  
  
Atsuya's hands met his face- "How did I forget about that trick?"  
  
"Let's just leave it at Fate Mandated Happenstance, and leave it at that," Nepeta said, leaning in to kiss him on the cheek.   
  
And thus, they rocketed off towards The Lost Vale settlement.  
  
Korrag watched them go, confounded, astonished...  
  
Suddenly determined.  
  
"Rangers! I should have known they'd bring their Zords," he swore, mounting Catastros, and sending his horse onwards at speed. "We suddenly have far much less time to wait!"  
  


* * *

  
Runame introduced the Kiramagers to the people of Lost Vale, and explained their mission- explaining them as descendants of the warriors who had entrusted both of their villages with prized possessions, and even going so far as to showcase Zabyun's gemstone form as the end result of the adventure that needed to be completed now.  
  
Needless to say, the villagers relented without much fuss- apparently, Jaxton, or rather, Jetta, had left them with a large littany of symbols worn by travelers to be aware of incase any of them came looking for the blue diamond deposit.  
  
The Kiramager's symbol was one of them.  
  
And thus, with the stone brought before them after being unearthed from a large, decoy burial mound, the Kiramagers were about to head back out towards Karthwasten.  
  
It was only as they exited the village gates, however, that they realized a new issue had presented itself.  
  
Korrag stood down the road, sword drawn, shield gleaming, Catastros armored and standing behind him... Zombie like minions on all sides of him.  
  
"Hello, Rangers," Korrag announced. "I have waited a long time for this moment." He pointed his sword at them. "Give me the Blue Diamond, and I will let you live. Refuse, and I will take it, and your lives."  
  
"Well that's a load of buning bullshit!" Fiya shouted from Atsuya's morpher.  
  
Korrag looked at the boy- "That voice---!"  
  
The core Kiramei Stones decaptchalogued from their partner's morphers- growing in size menacingly as they hovered infront of their partners.  
  
"So much for subtlty," Nepeta muttered.  
  
"You big meanie!" Heliko shouted. "How dare you keep harassing people over these stones!!"  
  
"You've really not changed a bit since that day we last met, have you?" Mahha asked.  
  
"I told you that Stone wasn't burried there!" Jetta taunted. "But did you listen to me? NO!!"  
  
"You wouldn't know your feet from your hands, the way you waltzed by me!" Shovellow laughed.  
  
"Those voices... Impossible...!" Korrag tensed up.  
  
"I told you I'd come back to haunt you, you damned traitor!" Fiya shouted. "Never expected it to be this literally, did you?!"  
  
"Runame," Harry handed over the blue stone to the girl. "Keep this safe and out of sight. We'll deal with this knight."  
  
"Of course," she nodded, and ran back into the Lost Vale's gates to hide and observe.  
  
"I don't..." Korrag froze. "The Phoenix. Of course that damned Bird would reincarnate you into the very stones I've been sworn to collect. What an ironic turn of fate."  
  
"Not as ironic as the fact we know exactly where you're heading to, you big ol' dummy!" Heliko exclaimed.  
  
"We're taking that stone we found today with us!" Fiya said. "And then we're going to take back that fragment you stole from ME, Too!"  
  
Korrag couldn't formulate a response to that that DIDN'T sound like a blatant denial of reality.  
  
 ** __"KIRAMEI GO!"/"SPARKLE!"__**  
  
*That* broke Korrag out of his stun lock- He threw his Shield Forwards- **"EYE OF THE MASTER!"**  
  
 **"KIRAMEI CHANGE!"** The Kiramagers called out.  
  
"NOT A CHANCE!!" Zabyun rocketed forwards- growing to full size infront of the other Kiramei Stones- absorbing the full magical spell blast entirely- preventing an explosion at all.  
  
 ** __"LET'S SPARKLE!"/"OH SHINE!"__**  
  
"MASHIIIIIIIN!" The other Kiramei Stones rocketed forwards- growing to full size and charging as Zords at Korrag's small army.  
  
Korrag went flying from the impact- Catastros just dove through a portal to the other side of the river once more, arriving in full scale Zord form instead of being actual horse size. All the zombie minions got exploded or crushed.  
  
"Everyone! Get in!" Fiya declared.   
  
"Let's go!" Harry said, rushing over to grab Runame and leaping up into the air onto Zabyun as he too transformed into Zord form.  
  
 _ **"MASHIIIIN!!"**_  
  
"Atsuya, we'll get the stone out of here!" Harry declared. "You hold him back!"  
  
"Got it!" Atsuya said, double tapping and striking his Morpher. "MASHIN GATTAI!"  
  
 ** __"MASHIN GATTAI!"__**  
  
"READY!" The Kiramei Stones called out. _**_"KIRA-MAGE-IN!"_**_  
  
Korrag grew to Zord size as a spell circle, well, encircled him.  
  
"You're full of Surprises, Farurin," Korrag said, eyeing the Megazord. 

"I go by Mashin Fiya now!" Fiya declared. "You'd better remember it when we kick your ass into last year!"  
  
"Your boasts mean nothing!" Korrag said, firing off an energy blast at them as he leaped for Catastros- Zabyun blocked the strike of course as he swung through the air and took off into the heavens, but it was just a distraction either way you sliced it,  
  
 ** _"UTHE MEJOR CATASTROS!"_** He combined with the Horse Zord. _**"CENTAURUS WOLF MEGAZORD!"**_  
  
The two mecha paired off against eachother on opposite sides of the river. The people of Lost Valley gazed upwards as one of their Guaridan Spirits seemed to be manifested before their very eyes.  
  
"You fools have no idea what you're up against!" Korrag taunted- his shield-chest firing off blasts of energy at them.  
  
Kiramagein swung Jetta- cutting through the blasts aimed at them with ease, dispersing the attacks.  
  
"Fool me once shame on you!" Jetta shouted.  
  
Korrag swung his spear-staff weapon, trying to launch a bladed energy burst across the river...  
  
 **"WOOOSHAAAH!"**  
  
He didn't get past generating the energy before Kiramagein leaped into the air, crossing the river and bringing Shovellow forwards in a massive punch to his helmeted face.  
  
 _"FOOL ME TWICE SHAME ON ME!"_ Shovellow added to the declarations.  
  
"Where did you get such power!?" Korrag demanded to know, staggering backwards.  
  
 **"YOU WON'T FOOL US AGAIN!!"** Heliko shouted- blades whriling across Kiramagein's chest. **_"IT'S SPANKING TIIIIIIIIIIIIIME!!!"_**  
  
Korrag's Centarus Wolf Megazord went flying backwards from the whirlwind attack.  
  
"Feel free to run like the coward you are at any time," Mahha declared as Kiramagein then turned to aim him at Korrag. _**"MAHHA BEAM!!"**_  
  
Crimson bolts of fire smashed into Korrag's mecha as he staggered to his feet- "GRAH!" he shouted in pain.  
  
"Just know that we'll follow you to the ends of time itself, you bastard!" Fiya declared as Kiramagein spread their legs into a stance, swinging Jetta around into a familiar circle.   
  
_**"KIRAMEIIIII DYNAMIIIIIIIIIC!"** _The Mashins shouted- channeling all the pent up emotions from the loss of their ruined past lives into a gleamingly powerful attack- easily surpassing the energy levels they normally put out even with their partner's help as they levied out an equal and opportune karmic justice upon their once former teammate.  
  
The triple slash of energy was rainbow colored this time as it swung forwards and crashed into the Centarus Wolf Megazord- creating a massive explosion in the fields outside of the Lost Valley settlement.  
  
 _ **_"CHECKMAGE!"_**_  
  
Catastros and Korrag went flying in separate directions, shrinking down to small scale as they came apart.   
  
Korrag hit the dirt, and tumbled to a halt, lying on his back as he gazed upwards at the towering titan that had harried him to such a quick defeat.  
  
"Impossible...!" Korrag breathed out.  
  
And then before anyone could react, a golden portal ripped open beneath Korrag and Catastros, dragging them both down into another place and time before snapping shut with a flury of white, gold, red, and blue sparkles.  
  
"Wait-!" Kiramagein took an enraged step forwards as Fiya shouted. "Damn it! Where did he go!?"

* * *

Korrag tumbled to a halt at the base of a golden throne within a dark, flooded chamber.  
  
"Korrag," the person sitting on said throne said, golden gauntlet wearing fingers tapping against the armrest. "What. Have I said. About going off without knowing who you're fighting?"  
  
"But Lord Gilgamesh--!" Korrag got to his feet--  
  
"But Nothing!" A single finger was raised to silence him. "The Kiramagers have a destiny to unite those stones, now. You cannot stop it."  
  
"Then WHY send me after those thieves in the first place?" Korrag asked. "What was even the point of it!? Why murder my former allies if THAT was to be the end result!?"  
  
The figure on the throne laughed- a melodious chime ringing into the air. "Why indeed? You cannot stop the inevitable, Korrag. And you took that mission upon yourself, before ever consulting me. Murdering your teammates was _**Your** Dark Wish,_ not mine."  
  
The gauntlet clad hand waved in dismissal. "Go, now, and think about your actions."  
  
Korrag snarled, but left as he was told...  
  
Except, he didn't do much thinking for very long.  
  
Once he was out of sight, feet angrily stomping through the waters of the flooded room, Korrag declared- "I will SHATTER those Kiramei stones. There is no such thing as the inevitable! My Teammates will be dead by my hands once again!"  
  


* * *

  
Zabyun landed near Karthwasten- shrinking back down to small scale as Harry and Runame ran into the village.  
  
"We need to head back, Now!" Harry declared.  
  
"What's going on?" Gray asked.  
  
"We were attacked on the way out of Lost Valley," Runame explained. "The Dark Knight who chased the Hero Jaxton to his death."  
  
"Aleshay?" Gray turned towards the D'ni woman.  
  
"Come, I'll take you to the Return Book," she nodded. "They've placed the other stones there."  
  
Harry and Runame followed after- not having yet caught the plural of 'stones' in that statement just given.  
  
It wasn't until they arrived in Hircine's portal chamber that Harry saw the inevitable future flashing before his eyes.  
  
Mabushiina was clutching Two Stones. A chunk of Blue Diamond under her right arm, and a light blue hued Kiramei Stone-- the same hue Harry's crystal body took when he transformed into a SIlver Kiramei Stone.  
  
Hircine stood there, on edge, both sets of ears raised to attention as if expecting danger.  
  
Harry didn't need to be a seer to predict what was about to happen- the fragment of Runame's own soul within his own Kiramei Stone was resonating loudly. Too Loudly.  
  
Harry had Shiny Breaker charging with a double tap- _**_"ONE DRILL BLAST!"_** _-before he rightly knew what was happening.  
  
He turned, aiming Shiny Breaker at a golden rift as it tore open in the chamber wall behind Runame- still holding that fragment of Blue Diamond in her arms.  
  
Korrag's sword lashed out from the rift as he stepped through.  
  
 _"SHIIIIIIIIIIIINEEEEEEE!"_ Harry shouted, plunging Shiny Breaker forwards...  
  
Just a second too late. Always a second too late.   
  
Shiny Breaker's drill tip clashed against Korrag's helmet just as the sword drew blood from Runame's back.  
  
The explosion from Shiny Breaker firing off point blank in the former Ranger's face sent him sprawling backwards through the Reversia Portal as it closed with another snap of gold, blue, red, and white sparkles.   
  
Harry flew backwards, hitting the other far wall with a thud that demorphed him on the spot.  
  
Runame hit the floor, a shocked, but knowing look in her eyes.  
  
And outside the cave, a Phoenix cawed, a silver glowing feather primed and ready.  
  
Despite the pain in his own back mirroring the blooming red on Runame's, Harry pushed himself over to the girl even as Hircine and Mabushina hurried over. Even as Gray drew Rule Breaker and stabbed the spot the portal had just opened at- trying to reverse engineer the connection...  
  
It was of no use.  
  
It was how things had to happen.  
  
Harry pulled Runame up into his lap even as the empty Silver stone tumbled to the ground next to them- he felt it resonating with the both of them.  
  
"Just hold on," he said, looking at the girl he barely knew, and yet knew far too well.  
  
"I..." she said, blue eyes fading to green as their sparkles faded from that mortal body, already transferring to the nearest available vessel. "I already am..."  
  
The Phoenix cawed again, and Runame's body errupted in silver flames within Harry's arms- not burning him or anything else- but her body was consumed regardless.  
  
And when the flames had passed, all that was left was that damned feather lying in his lap, stained with blood- a feather that ignited, and flew as energy into the Silver Kiramei Stone.  
  
"Wh... What just happened?" Zabyun asked- startled. "That portal- That portal was a Reversia gate! But How!?"  
  


* * *

  
Korrag lay on the flooded floor of an abandoned hallway, as his Lord stood above him, Reversia Stone held firmly in the golden gauntlet clad hand.   
  
"You thought to steal this treasure from me?" The Golden Armored figure asked, kneeling down and examining the bloodied wound visible through the ruined helmet. "Oh, Korrag. You foolish thing. In trying to defy fate, you merely perpetrated it's motion."  
  
The Camera finally panned to reveal the suited figure's head- or rather, his Helmet.  
  
A golden version of Garuza's crescent moon helmet gazed down at Korrag, single red eye gleaming with pity.  
  
"You failed to understand that _I Control Time,"_ Garuza- clad in the power and prestige of his former master, Gilgamesh- shook his head as he stood up again. "This was an inevitable turn of fate. I will heal your body, of course. But only in that one prepares a corpse to be presentable for a funeral."  
  
With his free hand, the Future Garuza snapped his fingers, summoning Bechats to grab the dead knight.   
  
"After all," he said, "you still have one last time loop to fulfill, My _Soon to be Stone_ Puppet."  
  


* * *

  
"What... happened?" Atsuya asked as his team returned to Karthwasten, finding the mood down and sour of all those present.  
  
Hircine looked to them, and gave a sad smile. "The Inevitable is what happened."  
  
She explained that the villagers had discovered a second deposit of Kiramei Stone that had grown within the statue they'd hidden the Blue Diamond fragment inside, when removing said fragment of Blue Diamond.  
  
Mabushiina had recognized it, but not understood what it meant for the future.  
  
Then, Hircine explained what had happened, and why now the silver stone sat there on a table, pulsing quietly with life resettled, with a pale, silver feather lying ontop of it.  
  
"I knew it was going to happen just a moment too late," Harry said in a quiet whisper when pressed to talk. "I think... atleast hers is the last life that Knight will ever take." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO. That's a bunch of time loops completed.  
> \---  
> The TES Verse's C0DA concept of the future is... a strange one, and one I can't see Bethesda officially making canon... I mean, the Thalmor setting loose a giant robot that shatters a continent? HOO. No way. Hah. That's stupidly insane.
> 
> Still. Here's a timeline where that happened and Nirn got FORCIBLY ejected out of the cluster by intervening Kiramei Stone Warrior Titans to save it, making the whole thing an Age on the outside edge of the cluster.   
> \---
> 
> Runamei... Mei... Let's be real here. There was always going to be a higher than 90% chance that from the moment I was writing the core Kiramei Stones as reincarnations of the Overdrive team, that the silver stone Harry bonded with was going to have had the same fate. Meeting her... and witnessing her die...
> 
> It's a fixed time loop. I literally had no other course of action that would allow the timeline to continue. This chapter... as I wrote it, I had the growing sense of dread I was written into a narrow corridor with limited flexibility. Too much suddenly was snapping into place as the timeloops closed.
> 
> Korrag's silent first appearance when the Mystics fought him is immediately after this. The Kiramei Stones, the old Overdrive team, got their revenge on the one who betrayed them and killed a lot of them directly and indirectly. 
> 
> Getting the fragments of stone to finish off Zabyun's stone body nearly wrapped up too... That loop closed. And Mei... Yeah. That's another loop closed off. 
> 
> This chapter was about the tying off of loops, and laying some foreshadowing for whats to come.
> 
> This chapter marks the first time the Kiramagers have deliberately stepped foot out into the Multiverse as a whole. They've literally linked across the multiverse and will head back again. Their story... it's expanding in scope now...
> 
> Just the Same as Garuza's story expands.
> 
> I think it goes without saying that it was clear from the start of this fic that Garuza is the primary antagonist of this Kiramager adaptation, rather than Gilgamesh. There's a lot more that I also think goes without saying regarding this twist, so I won't say it. 
> 
> This, too, was an inevitable facet of a time loop closing in on itself, drawing tighter and tighter as the story progressed. 
> 
> This was an inevitable outcome for Garuza, regardless of the How it came about and what he used to get there.
> 
> The Kanaema Stones really gave the perfect missing piece of the puzzle to make this work out in the best possible way.   
> \---  
> Next Chapter: INTERMISSION: Burning Question.
> 
> In which Harley talks to Ezabi/Hircine about what just happened.


	20. INTERMISSION: Burning Question.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harley and Hircine talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:   
> Discussion of possibly preventing a Death.

EARTH DATE: JANUARY 5TH, 2013.  
  
Harley stood next to the swirling vortex leading to the Hunting Grounds, looking to Hircine as she prepared to return through to her world.   
  
"Could you have done anything?"  
  
Immediately, without delay:  
  
"Unfortunately, no," Hircine shook her head. "Runame's soul was never this one's to take, even when she had right to claim it when Runame became one of my Wolves. This one saw her fate spelled out before her in that instant. Time... was never on this one's side."  
  
"I know she's still alive as Mei," Harley said, frowning. "But... it feels like a hollow victory."  
  
"This one can only say that Time is a cruel mistress," Hircine said. "You can claw out a victory here and there against it. Create new branches... but it always compensates somewhere. This one made a win by breaking the cycle in your world, only for that rotten archer to make a mess of things after."  
  
"That sounds like bullshit," Harley said. "What about all the time loops that made us even possible to begin with?"  
  
Hircine eyed Harley, and said, "The uses that created this reality had their own inevitable roles to play, did they not? Some things are fixed in stone despite the free will we exert on reality. Runame would always die today, regardless of what any of us did to prevent it, and prevent it we tried." Hircine sighed. "Even here on the steps to this one's realm, and the girl still died. But the knight was taken in the same breath." She chuckled. "That was not something that even rarely happened when this one saw events that could transpire. Sure, his fate would have inevitably been the same in some other way... but that was not how it happened."  
  
"So what am I supposed to take away from all of this, then, Ezabi?" Harley asked.  
  
Hircine... Ezabi... Jade Harley looked her in the eyes, and said, "Take the flexible wins whenever you can, even when confronted with inflexible truths... and maybe... see if those inflexible truths are truly as indestructible as they seem, yes?"  
  
Harley considered that, then nodded. "Alright. I'll give it a try."  
  
"That is all this one asks," Hircine said, and then stepped for the portal. "See you on the other side, Five Claw."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter:  
> MSK: 01X24: "Pilgrim knows the road to go. How many times we've told you so?" (Part 1)  
> \---
> 
> Determination Bound has finished uploading. I've made a little progress into the next act... and now things are plowing on ahead.
> 
> You'll probably be seeing a couple rapid fire uploads the next couple of days to round out this act.


	21. MSK: 01X24: "Pilgrim knows the road to go. How many times we've told you so?" (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Kiramagers confront a new enemy; The next Kanaema Stone is found.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Murderous Intent.  
> Soul Fusions Gone Wrong.   
> Picture Linkage and Embedding.

**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 9TH, 2013.**  
  
The silver stone sat on small end table in a side room of the Beltus' lounge room- pulsing softly with light as it had been since it absorbed in a soul several days earlier.   
  
Around it were several other chunks of Kiramei Stone- four of the pieces scanned and confirmed to go together into Zabyun's current body- as well as two sealed glass boxes containing the two Kanaema Stones.  
  
But it was that Silver Stone that took the central focus of everything.  
  
Pulse. Pulse.  
  
Mei stared at it with a littany of mixed emotions. On the one hand, she knew that her past self had to have died inorder for her to be reincarnated into a Kiramei Stone. It was an inevitability. But for it to happen just a day after she'd learned who she was?  
  
It felt like it was giving her something just to take it away again.  
  
She stepped out of the side room, finding Atsuya, Tomo, and Harry preparing for something.  
  
"Hello, All," she greeted.  
  
"Oh, Mei," Harry smiled- though it was clear he was fighting back a wince of internal discomfort- Mei couldn't blame him for she was feeling much the same at the moment. "I didn't know you were visiting today."  
  
"I wasn't either, until I found myself drawn in again," Mei answered, then tilted her head. "What's going on?"  
  
"We're going to go searching for either another Kanaema Stone or a Monstone, maybe both," Tomo answered. "The Seers predicted we'd be fighting a gigantified Monstone today, so we're hoping to either preempt it, or be on the scene when it emerges."  
  
"I see," Mei said, parsing the information.   
  
"Would you like to come Hunt with us?" Atsuya asked- and it was somewhat clear he'd phrased his question that way specifically for the word Hunt to have such emphasis on it.  
  
Mei paused as she questioned that. Would she like to join them on this kind of hunt?  
  
Tomo gave a hopeful smile, Harry looked slightly uncomfortable by it, but... then again maybe that was why Atsuya had invited her along just now?  
  
"If you'll have me," Mei said, giving a curt bow. "I'll be in your care for today."

* * *

_"These Fools still insist on Shining?" Garuza narrated. "Idiots."_   
  
_"Their ability to change the future is but an illusion," he continued. "The Future is the Past, and locked in stone."_   
  
_"Their Names Are..."_

[ _MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

Nepeta looked at the multitude of clothing options on the rack before her. "Hmm... dark colors would a bit too much right now, wouldn't you think?" She asked.  
  
"Eh, a little bit," Harley agreed with a slight wince. "I mean, it's not really a memorial service considering she's still alive, really."  
  
"More a resurrection service anyways," Nepeta mused.  
  
It was a Wednesday presently- that weekend they had planned for the ceremony that would hopefully reunite all of Mei's scattered soul fragments.   
  
Still, mending this situation was in their goals for the foreseeable future.   
  
"Mama!" Carry called out, holding up a bright yellow sundress in just her size. "This one, please!"  
  
Nepeta eyed the dress and blinked- "Why Yellow?"  
  
Carry pouted. "I want to wear it!"  
  
"Okay, okay," Nepeta sighed.   
  
Time travel left certain implications on the table in a rather painful way.   
  


* * *

  
"Princess, what is it you expect us to find out here, exactly?" Equius asked as Mabushiina cautiously peered through the ruined cave that had once held a graveyard's worth of monstone crystals. Jetta and Esprez hovered over his shoulders, worrying as they looked around the dark and colapsed cave, sensing the dormant levels of Jamental that had scoured the area.  
  
"Some sense of closure, if anything," Mabushiina answered. "Maybe Garuza left some sign of where he left Father's body, if it's here. Or maybe it's somewhere else entirely, but... if it's not here... I need to know."  
  
"Agreed," Mabayuine said, hovering over her daughter's shoulders. "Garuza believed my husband dead, but we know better now. If we can find his body, then maybe we can figure out where he hid the stone he migrated his soul into."  
  
"I don't think Garuza would have buried Oladdin here," Esprez started to say. "It's more likely--"  
  
"It's not like we have any other leads, is it?" Mother and Daughter turned to look at Esprez in that moment- a dangerous gleam in their eyes.  
  
Equius recognized it instantly- the same warning look his Mother got whenever she was about to lay down the law on something.  
  
"We'll keep searching," Equius said, trying to diffuse the situation.  
  
"Right," Mabushiina nodded. "Of course we will!"  
  


* * *

  
Kurantula skipped through the waters of the flooded SGC, humming a happy tune.  
  
"You're in a happy mood," Garuza observed the Mofang as he handled the dormant Reversia stone, gently passing it from hand to hand. The darkened stone had yet to regain its shine, but soon, he suspected. So very soon...  
  
"Oh! Let me gush for once?" Kurantula asked, moving up to his partner in crime.  
  
"Fine," Garuza said.  
  
"I've created the ultimate Ranger buster!" Kurantula grinned. "You see, it throws a bomb, and it bowls people over! BUT! Only if it gets a strike of all pins knocked down does it actually win and cause an explosion!"  
  
"That seems rather pointless," Garuza observed. "But that's the intent, isn't it?'  
  
"Naturally!" Kurantula nodded. "I got inspired for revenge after seeing the video of all those teams teaming up to beat Flurious plan!" he paused- "Whatever the heck Flurious' plan even was. I still don't get what it was about, but anyways-! Doesn't matter now, they're all dead and we're still alive!"  
  
"Wait," Garuza started, "Bowling, doesn't that require ten or eleven pins to make a full strike?"  
  
"Exactly!" Kurantula giggled. "And how many rangers come to a team usually?"  
  
"Five to six, rarely more," then Garuza realized. "It's a Team-up buster!"  
  
"Exaaaaactly!" Kurantual spun on the spot, giggling like mad. "I've got, like THREE _ **whoooooole** _squads of Bombowler Jamenshi going around causing trouble! Rangers will come in DROVES to beat them, based off of their recent successes!"

"And what makes you think they'll fall for such an obvious trap with the Seers warning about it?" Garuza asked.

"That's the best part!!!" Kurantula shouted to the ceiling. "It won't matter if they do or not! There's a fourth batch that Gilgamesh requested I assign to some New General of his as a super squad! The others? If they break up some ranger teamups, that's fine! If they don't, also fine! They're the DISTRACTIONS!"  
  
"I see we're taking a page out of Enter's book," Garuza realized. "Distract them with too many similar attacks in multiple places, and leave the real plan hidden in the chaos."  
  
"Exactly exactly exactly!" Kurantula laughed. "It's the best plan ever because the Seers can't pre-cog off of this new general!"  
  
"They can't?" Garuza asked. "How do you know that?"  
  
"Let me let you in on a little secret, Garuza," Kurantula waggled a finger to get his friend to lean in close.   
  
And so Garuza did, and he listened, and his hand clenched around Reversia upon hearing the news.  
  
Then he LAUGHED. "I know that already, Kurantula! I helped DESIGN the device!"   
  
"Oh, I see. That's- **WAIT. _YOU DID WHAT!?"_**  
  


* * *

  
On the planet Diaspora...   
  
Tomo, Atsuya, Harley, and Mei arrived at the base of a staircase, leading up a forested hill into a shrine area.   
  
"This is the place?" Atsuya asked.   
  
"This is where Aunt Cassie said we'd need to be," Tomo nodded.  
  
"Let's hope we find the Stones, quick," Harry said, heading up the stairs to the shrine.  
  
"Do we know what this place is a shrine to?" Mei asked.   
  
"Aaah..." Tomo brought up a screen on their morpher, and scowled. "Oh. Great, it's a shrine to 'The Unending.'"  
  
"What's 'The Unending'?" Harry asked.  
  
"Civilian answer? It's a subdimension that doesn't follow the normal flow of time in this reality," Tomo explained. "As for what it really is, I can't tell you. Not exactly. It's something that's been pretty heavily classified and I only know about it because I was there when it was being classified by Alternia and Atlantis' meetings. It should be something nobody knows about, but it turns out that rifts to that place tend to reopen again and again after a while, so when people start going missing in the same areas again and again..."  
  
"A shrine got built and people started worshipping it?" Mei asked.  
  
"Rather, the shrine was built to contain the rift and keep it from opening again," Tomo tapped down a screen. "Or, atleast, could keep it opening on a set schedule to prevent it from tearing out into the universe in other places. It looks like we're in luck and there isn't much of an energy flow through it right now, so it should be safe to be here and not get pulled through."  
  
"They truly scheduled such a thing?" Harry asked quietly to himself. "What a wonder skill."  
  
They arrived near the top of the stairs soon after, where a closed off temple building resided atop the hill, and heard the sound of arrows being fired at a board near the back side of the temple.  
  
"Weird," Tomo frowned, checking their morpher. "Someone should be here to meet us."  
  
"Maybe they're out in back?" Mei offered.  
  
"Maybe," Tomo frowned.  
  
They headed to the back area, and found a lone shrine maiden practicing with the bow and arrow. A fae-eared girl [with brown hair, and violet eyes](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o2.png), taking aim at a distant target.

She wasn't wearing the shrine's standard uniform Tomo saw on their Morpher's display, however.  
  
"Excuse me," Tomo took a step forwards. "Miss? Do you know where the staff are?"  
  
The maiden turned her head to look at them, frowning.  
  
The three Kiramagers and lone Go-Buster felt chilled to their cores, with the look she gave them.   
  
"They fled," she said simply, "in the wake of a powerful monster."  
  
"...Where... did they go?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"Down to the river," the shrine maiden pointed her bow down towards a nearby river. "I can take you there."  
  
And then she turned to leave without another word.  
  
Atsuya was the first one to speak- "This is an obvious trap, isn't it?"  
  
"The hair's wrong and something's off with the voice but... that was remarkably close to Iyo Kodera's face, wasn't it?" Tomo asked.  
  
"Wonderful," Harry said, for once meaning it in an utterly sarcastic way and not in his usual emphasis.   
  
"I'll stay behind to call for backup and catch up with you in a moment," Mei said. "Go after her."  
  
Harry hesitated upon hearing that, but Atsuya and Tomo nodded.  
  
"Right, let's go, Harry," Atsuya said, leading down the path after the girl.  
  
Harry gave Mei one of those LOOKS, and she rolled her eyes at him, "Go, I'll be right behind you."  
  
Harry nodded, and then took off after his teammates.  
  
Mei took out her morpher and activated its Call Mode.  
  


* * *

  
Across the Galaxy- Nepeta, Harley, and Equius' morphers chimed off.

* * *

  
Mei felt like frowning as her Morpher responded with "Error: Contacts already in call." a moment before her own morpher rang with an alert.  
  
Then, as she accepted it, and heard what was going on, her eyes widened- "Oh no!"  
  
She ran off after the Kiramagers.  
  


* * *

  
The girl wearing Iyo's face stopped at the river, where a large pit had been dug in the hill side just off shore. "Here," she said, pointing underground. "They fled through here."  
  
Harry activated his morpher. _ **_"KIRAMEI SEARCHING!"_** _Energy beams swept over the pit and, the girl as well, and then chimed- _"DISCOVERY!"_  
  
A hologram was produced, depicting an energy signature deep within the pit- and a second, hidden within the girl's body.  
  
"Ah... I was hoping you wouldn't do that," she said before laughing, madly.  
  
"Where are the shrine workers?" Atsuya demanded- cutting the girl's laughter off.  
  
"In the place they swore to protect," she said, eyeing them with a dangerous navy light shining in her eyes. "I have no idea what exists beyond the portal within that shrine, but if I blow up the mountain around it, it will erupt and consume this world utterly."  
  
"We won't let you," Tomo said, drawing their Morpher ready.  
  
"Go ahead and morph, I'll let you as long as you let me," the girl said, drawing out a rather twisted looking Ninja Wind Morpher- almost as if someone had tried modifying it to look like Harry's Shiny Changer.  
  
She strapped it to her wrist, as the Kiramagers activated their morphers.  
  
 _ **_"KIRAMEI GO!" / "SHINE!"_**_  
  
She tapped a button as well- and dark energy overcame the medley of a morpher, [shifting it into a Jamental Changer-](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o10.png) the off colored variation of Harry's own morpher. 

**__"Be Clad In Darkness,"__** it announced.  
  
"KIRAMEI CHANGE!" The Rangers called out.  
  
"Jamen Change," the girl announced.  
  
The four of them spun the wheels of their morphers- and three blasts of bright light shone out against an erupting wave of darkness.  
  
 _ **_"LET'S SPARKLE!"/"OH SHINE!"_**_  
  
Garuza's laughter echoed out into the air as the darkness dispersed, revealing that the girl's shrine maiden costume had become overwritten with some kind of military suit whose epaulettes were designed after crows, holding orbs in their mouths. Her head was left exposed, revealing the Bechat symbol painted onto her face. At her hip was a riding cop, coiled up like a whip.  
  
"Come forth," she declared, "my monstrous pet."  
  
From the pit- a Monstone burst forth free from the ground.  
  
"Monstone!" Tomo shouted.  
  
"Look at it's chest!" Harry pointed- and they looked, and saw that deep within the crystal of the Monstone's core was another shape, another crystal.  
  
A Claw shaped half of a yin-yang symbol. A Kanaema Stone.  
  
The Monstone roared- charging at them.  
  
Tomo leaped forwards to tackle the unknown girl, while Atsuya and Harry ran to meet the Monstone.  
  
"You're good," the unknown girl said, ducking and weaving out of the way of every shot or kick or punch that Tomo sent her way. "But I'm faster."  
  
She didn't seem to be breaking a sweat.  
  
"It's really powerful!" Atsuya said- tackling the Monstone, and trying to hold it back.  
  
"It must be the Kanaema Stone!" Harry realized.  
  
[The Monstone threw Atsuya aside. ](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o7.png)  
  


"How- are- you- so- fast!?" Tomo shouted- frustrated.  
  
To that, she just laughed- loudly- and insanely, continuing to dodge everything Tomo threw forwards as an attack.  
  
That was- until a new challenger leaped into battle-   
  
"STAG SLASH!" Mei shouted- morphed up as the Silver Go-Buster- bringing her sword down into the fray and managing to land a strike--  
  
In that, for the first time, the unknown girl had to throw her arm up to block the attack- a shield erupting from her morpher.  
  
Mei rebounded from the shield- staggering backwards into a tree. Tomo regrouped next to her.   
  
"Nice timing," Tomo said.  
  
"I couldn't get through to anyone," Mei reported. "Clones of the same Jamenshi are attacking multiple worlds across the galaxies right now."  
  
"Seriously!?" Tomo asked- and that made the girl wearing Iyo's face laugh again.  
  
"Who are you?" Mei asked, annoyed by that laugh.  
  
"You see now how pointless it is to struggle?" the girl asked, having refused to give her name. She uncoiled her riding cop whip, and snapped it outwards- dark energy radiated along its surface.   
  
Tomo and Mei prepared for the girl to attack them- but instead...  
  
Atsuya and Harry shouted behind them as the Monstone threw them aside like they were paper dolls.  
  
The girl wearing Iyo's face lashed out with the whip- it sailed through the air like a spear point and struck the Monstone from behind. Tomo and Mei watched it move belatedly, only a second behind its movements.  
  
Then, they watched in horror as- with a roar and a surge of energy- [the Monstone GREW to giant size.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o8.png)

"STOOOOOOOOONE!" it roared- stomping down towards Harry and Atsuya.  
  
They dodged aside- and in the moment it took Tomo and Mei to look back, the girl was gone.  
  
"Damn it!" Tomo swore. "She got away!"  
  
 **"WONDER CHANGE!"** Harry shouted- and Drijan was teleported in a moment later.   
  
_**_"OH EXCELLENT!"_**_  
  
 _ **"MASHIN HENKEI!"**_  
  
As the Monstone turned towards Gigant Driller's transformation, Atsuya regrouped with Tomo and Mei.  
  
"Where're the others?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"I don't-" Mei's answer was cut off as the Kiramager's morphers sounded off.  
  
Tomo struck theirs, and Harley called out, "Tomo, Atsuya! We need backup in Diaspora's market! There's Jamenshi everywhere!"  
  
"Go help them!" Mei decided. "I'll help Harry with the Monstone!"  
  
"Right," Atsuya nodded, and ran off, Tomo a second behind him.  
  
"Here goes..." Mei leaped up into the air and landed inside Drijan's presently inactive cockpit as Gigant Driller squared off against the Monstone. "Harry! I'll help out here!"  
  
"Alright!" Harry agreed. "Let's beat this thing wonder fast!"

* * *

"YODOM BOWLINNNNG!" The Jamenshi cried out, [rolling a ball towards a gathered group of civilians](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o3.png)\- ten of them to be exact.   
  
The bowling bomb rolled past them, [knocking about seven over in the strike.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o5.png)

"Damn! Seven just won't do! I need the full ten!" the Jamenshi swore, jovially, as if not really upset.  
  
Garuza watched from behind a car as the Bechats reset the 'pins.' "What nonsense is this?"

"A strike only happens when you get ten in one go!" The Jamenshi, a Bombowler mask type, insisted. He threw his arms into the air- **_"That kind of BOOM is my aesthetic!!"_**  
  
He rolled up for another attempt with a bomb ball in hand...  
  
 _"HEY! JAMENSHI!"_  
  
The Kiramagers came running up, five of them morphed.   
  
"Ohhoh?" The Jamenshi turned towards them. "Kiramagers! I am-!"  
  
"I know!" Nepeta said, trolling the Jamen, "Balled Up Eraser Crumbs Jamen!"  
  
"WHAT!?" Bombowler droped the ball he was holding- and it landed on his foot. "OWOWOWOW!!"  
  
"Gotcha!" Nepeta said, drawing out her blaster, and firing at his face.  
  
The Jamenshi was hit- and then the other Kiramagers followed suit a moment later- BOOM!  
  
The Jamenshi was destroyed.  
  
"How weak are these Jamenshi!?" Garuza asked, astonished.  
  
And then another bowling ball rolled in from the side- striking the five Kiramagers and sending them sprawling to their feet.  
  
"HAhAH! STEEEEERIIIIIIIIIKE!" The NEXT Bombowler Jamenshi declared.   
  
The Kiramagers got back to their feet... but nothing exploded.  
  
"Wait-" The Jamenshi started- "Noooo! There's only five of you! i FAILED!" He fell to his knees and started sobbing.  
  
"This is stupid," Tomo said, combining their sword and blaster. "KIRAMEI BUSTER!"  
  
 _ **_"KIRAKIRAMEI CHARGE!"_**_  
  
A single blast was all that was needed to defeat that Jamenshi next.  
  
"BECHAAAAATS!" Another Bombowler came out of the woodworks immediatley after- sending Bechats after the Kiramagers in swarm, and unleashing bomb after bomb towards them, trying to knock them all over in one group.  
  
The Kiramagers, wise to this, started leaping onto the nearby scenery as they avoided getting blown up.  
  
"What's with this reckless abandon!?" Equius demanded.  
  
"It's got to be some kind of trick, right?!" Nepeta asked.  
  
"A distraction's more like it!" Harley snapped and teleported one of the Jamenshi's bombs right above his own bomb mask head.  
  
 _ **CLONK!**_  
  
"OOOOF!" The Jamenshi fell to his knees- and took a sword strike from Atsuya a moment later to finish him off.  
  
The Bechats scattered after that Jamenshi bit the dust, and the Kiramagers regrouped for the moment.  
  
"What's going on today?" Harley asked, looking to Tomo and Atsuya. "Where's Harry?!"  
  
"Fighting the Monstone we were hunting," Atsuya answered. "It grew to giant size right before you called us."  
  
"There's more," Tomo added. "There's a new General in town- and I think they modified Iyo's body to make her."  
  
"What?" Equius asked. "How dare they!"  
  
"It gets worse," Tomo continued. "She said she's going to blow up the ground around a shrine dedicated to sealing a Rift to the Unending- she doesn't even know where it goes but she thinks destroying the ground around it will make the rift consume the entire planet!"  
  
"We have to stop her," Atsuya said.   
  
"But there's so many Jamenshi-" Equius started- and as if on cue, explosions sounded out elsewhere in town.  
  
"We'll just have to take them all out fast," Atsuya said. "That's probably how this weird lady plans on blowing things up anyways!"  
  
"Right!" The kiramagers nodded, and ran off for the next set of explosions.

* * *

_***GRIIIIINDSPARKSPARKSPARRRRKKSSS!*** _

"Gah!" Mei clung to Shiny Breaker within the cockpit. "How annoyingly strong!"  
  
"Tell me about it!" Harry's voice echoed out as he fought the Monstone- the cockpit rattled around Mei with each motion.   
  
Drijan's radio chimed, and Mei brought up an onscreen hologram to answer- "Little busy right now!"  
  
 _"Mei!?"_ Gina asked, startled, appearing before her. _"What are you doing in-?_ NO! Nevermind! _The Kiramagers need backup fighting the Jamenshi that-"_ She stopped, and stared as data feed came in- **"IS THAT A GIANT MONSTONE!?"**  
  
"Yes! As I said, we're a little busy!" Mei nodded- then clung to the controls as everythingrocked from an impact to the chest of Gigant Driller.  
  
The Mecha Stumbled backwards from the attack, and Harry roared- drill hand spinning as he punched forwards.  
  
 _"Hold on, let me get the energy readings from Drijan's sensors,"_ Gina said, tapping away at a keyboard off screen. _"...Holy mother of-_ Is that a Kanaema Stone inside of it!?"  
  
 ** _"STOOOOOOOOOOONE!"_** The Monstone roared and it punched back.  
  
Everything shook, and Mei shot the Doctor a look that, had she been human and not wearing a helmet, would have perfectly encapsulated the "What do you think?!" response. As she was wearing a helmet regardless, Mei said it aloud- "Yes! It is! Which one is it?!"  
  
 _"It's probably Energia,"_ Gina answered, _"the energy readings are higher than a full compliment of six ZPMS! How is it even using that much energy!? The output alone would burn out most--!"_  
  
"NOT THE TIME, DOC!" Harry shouted as he kicked out at the Monstone- it shrugged it off and punched at him again- smashing a blow against the shoulder containing the cockpit.  
  
Mei shrieked as sparks flew from a view screen as it cracked from the impact.  
  
Gigant Driller staggered backwards from the hit, protecting its damaged shoulder for the moment.   
  
"Wait. Burn out? _Actually that gives me an idea!"_ Gina said- the screen she was on flaring with static from damage to the nearby screen. _"Just give me a second to scan it!"_  
  
"I don't know if we'll have that time, Doc!" Harry protested, covering his defenses as best as he could from the Monstone as it roared at him. "Drijan's taking a beating!"  
  
 _"If you can hold out for another few minutes-!_ " Gina said- _"I think you might be able to wait for the Monstone to burn itself out from the overuse of the Kanaema Stone and whatever else is super charging it."_  
  
"Whatever else!?" Mei asked.  
  
"Yes!" Gina nodded. _"There's an extra energy reading coming from the core of the Monstone that's amplifying all power put through it. Energia's energy output is being amplified by it higher than it ordinarily would! I think!"_  
  
"You're not sure?!" Harry asked- ducking under a strike aimed at his head, and then punching back with the drill.  
  
"I'm hedging my bets on what I'm seeing infront of-"   
  
The Monstone roared, and slammed into Drijan- and must have knocked out some kind of transponder, because the singal cut on the impact, and a warning "SIGNAL LOST" Error message replaced Gina's face on the screen.  
  
"How long is a few minutes!?" Harry asked, panicking.  
  
"How should I know!?" Mei asked, not sure what to do either.

* * *

[Elsewhere on Diaspora,](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o11.png) Equius slashed at the Jamenshi. Then Nepeta tackled him by the arm to leave him open for Harley to come in and slash away.

He blocked that, and then ducked under Nepeta's high kick.  
  
"This one's better than the last!" Equius shouted, slashing away.  
  
"I'M THE ORIGINAL GRADE!" This Bombowler declared- then took a kick that sent him flying.  
  
"But still as weak as ever if you take a hit," Nepeta said.  
  
Atsuya and Tomo fell in alongside the rest of the team as another version of the jamenshi came tumbling in from left field.  
  
"You won't be getting away with this!" Atsuya said. "We'll be stopping all of you!"  
  
"Good luck with that!" There was the sound of a crow, and the girl, in her shrine outfit, teleported in again.  
  
"You again!" Tomo snarled. "Just who are you?! And don't dodge the question this time!"  
  
"Very well," She activated her Morpher again- "Jamen Change."  
  
[The transformation sequence played out, but this time with even more flare- ](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o12.png)a cape was added to her back, and her hair turned white as a headdress formed atop it.

"I am Yodonna," She said, holding out her riding cop and running her hand along its length. "The new Private Secretary to Emperor Gilgamesh." She smirked. "And also... the reincarnation of the ones you call Escape, and Ridley, fused into one being."  
  
"A fusion-!?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"So that means-!?" Nepeta trailed off, not wanting to say the words.  
  
Garuza watched from behind a corner, musing, "So she remembers her past lives as well. I can only imagine what kind of conflict must be running on inside that head of hers."  
  
"All the battles we've had together thus far were mere games," 'Yodonna' explained. "It's time you start trembling with true fear... you filthy mortals."  
  
"Damn you, hiding inside Iyo's body like that," Tomo snarled, clenching a fist. "What kind of game are you playing!?"  
  
"Isn't it obvious?" the girl asked, her eyes glowing orange for a moment, implying Ridley was speaking then. "You can't destroy me without destroying this girl's body."  
Her eyes shifted violet, "You may be good, but we're faster. Stronger. Better. In every way than we were before. Your morality for harming an innocent or restoring a few lost souls to existence?"   
  
One eye stayed violet, the other shifted orange. "What will it be?" She asked, then she leaned her head back and stuck out her tongue- a crow's caw echoed out.  
Tomo ran in, trying to tackle this strange soul fused girl and take the Morpher away from her- only to get kicked backwards with a boot to the head.  
  
"Tomo!" Atsuya called as he and the others ran up to catch them.  
  
"Bechaaaats." Yodonna laughed as the minions flooded in, "Oh, you're too weak as you are now. Let's remedy that."

[She struck her weapon against the Bechats backs, empowering them with energy.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage24-o13.png)  
  
"BECHAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The Bechats all dropped their weapons, and then- glitching with dark energy- ran forwards at the Kiramagers like a horde of zombies.  
  
Some of the Bechats grappled with Harley, in rather creepy ways- "This is way gross!" She zapped out of their grip, into the air. "FIRE!" She blasted down with her gun, demolishing the Bechats...  
  
Except they got right back up to their feet after being defeated- Harley slashed at them as she landed.  
  
Nepeta tackled with some Bechats as well- but similarly found herself unable to beat them.  
  
"This is nuts!" Tomo exclaimed, firing off at the Bechats.  
  
Equius slashed at the Bechats, and Atsuya got flung away by some.  
  
But each time they went down, they came right back up to their feet.  
  
Garuza watched on with interest.  
  
"They keep coming back every time we take them down!" Tomo realized.  
  
"They're like Zombie Bechats!" Equius realized, slashing away at the overpowered beasts.  
  
"Is this really the time to name them!?" Nepeta asked, shooting at the Bechats.  
  
"You're one to talk!" Equius protested, referring to Nepeta's earlier trolling rename of the Jamenshi.  
  
"This is wrong wrong wrong! They're way too strong!" Harley protested, dodging attacks and slashing away.

* * *

And while that was happening- "STONE!" Gigant Driller got shoved backwards from repeated punches and headbutts from the Monstone.  
  
"JUST DIE ALREADY!" Harry shouted, punching his drill forwards- but Driller's motors were clearly straining fighting against the strength of the Monstone.  
  
Mei's morpher chimed off within the cockpit- Gina's voice echoing through- _"Mei! Are you still there?! I lost the signal!"_  
  
"We're holding on!" Mei answered, clinging to the controlls-  
  
"STONE!" They were punched in the chest again- and knocked back into a mountain. Dirt went flying everywhere.  
  
"KYAH!" Mei shrieked as gravity shifted.  
  
"I can't even make a dent with Gigant Driller on full power!" Harry exclaimed, staring upwards, dazed for a moment. "What gives!? Where's the burn out!?"  
  


* * *

  
Gina tapped away at her screen, "It should be any minute now!"  
  
 _"It's been minutes already!"_ Harry and Mei protested at the same time.  
  
Gina winced. "I'm sorry! That's all I can give you! Energia's power is being corrupted- it should be burning through the Monstone's body at an alarming rate!!"  
  


* * *

  
Gigant Driller got back to its feet, motors straining.  
  
The Monstone charged them before they could recover.  
  
"GAH!" Harry shouted as he took sparking blows to the chest.  
  


* * *

  
Atsuya staggered backwards into a railing. "We keep defeating them but there's no end!" He gazed at the Bechats zombieing their way towards him. "What do we do!?"  
  
"BECHA!" The Bechats launched themselves at him.  
  
 ** _SPARK! PUNCH! WHAM!_**  
  
The Bechats overpowered the Kiramagers and tossed them over the railing onto the landing below.  
  
The Bechats clung to the railing, reaching, grasping over it, as Yodonna and the Bombowler approached to gaze down upon the rangers.  
  
"You...!" Tomo got to their feet, glaring upwards. "Why are you doing this!?"  
  
The girls' eyes pulsed orange- "You ruined my chance at a new life. My team's chance at a new life. You couldn't let us live, could you?" She started to laugh. "My Dream Now... My Dream is to See everything you love crushed into a powder and then **_SHOVED DOWN YOUR THROATS BEFORE I RIP OUT YOUR HEARTS AND EAT THEM BEFORE YOUR EYES!!!"_**  
  
"But that's not conquest... that's just destruction!!" Tomo shouted. "Wasn't that what GIlgamesh is after!? Ruling the universe!? How does destroying this planet do anything to accomplish that!?"  
  
"Lord Gilgamesh has decided that there is to be a demonstration of what happens when you defy his rule," the girl's eyes shifted violet. "Just as Papa Enter was consumed by him... so too shall your world be consumed by an unstable rift to another dimension! All will submit, or be destroyed!"  
  
"You can't do that...!" Nepeta shook her head.  
  
"So this is what Gilgamesh's plan is?!" Atsuya said, pushing to his feet, but falling to his knees. "What- what kind of choice is that!?"  
  
"The kind that ends this pointless war," Yodonna said, and stuck her tongue out again at them for no damned reason before laughing madly.  
  


* * *

  
**TO BE CONTINUED.**   
  


* * *

  
**_KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!_**  
  
Within the vault on the Beltus-- the Kanaema Stone Destoria pulsed within its glass case, shattering the box and teleporting away.  
  


* * *

  
 _ **NEXT KIRAMAGER!**_  
  
"I'm done playing with you all," Yodonna said.  
  
"Just wait, we'll turn this battle around!" Tomo declared.  
  
"We'll take the Power of the Phoenix for ourselves!" Atsuya declared.  
  
Yondonna laughed. "There's no way you can!"  
  
 **NEXT EPISODE: 25: "Straight as an Arrow. You Carry our Intentions Through the Wind." (Part 2)**  
  
"SPARKLING NEXT TIME, TOO! KIRAFUUUUUL GOOOOOOO!" Oladdin shouted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, of course, that Iyo and Yodonna are played by different actresses. Even with just the Screenshots reflecting that, comparing them, it's completely obvious they're different people. If I were legit running this story as a Power Rangers Adaptation on TV, though, they *would* be played by the same Actress. So, we're just going to have to pretend here that they are the same person. 
> 
> That first troubling note aside...
> 
> Fusing Ridley and Escape into Yodonna is another risky move. It pushes along the ongoing wish arc with her even longer than it already has. It's now me balancing two character archetypes dueling for each other in the same body... and there's only one reason I'm doing it with Yodonna, and that's as a practice run for [SPOILERS]. If it weren't for that, I'd have fully killed Ridley off already.
> 
> You can probably guess what I mean by that spoiler box, but I'm going to leave it there for those that haven't pieced together what's happening with that plot arc yet. 
> 
> I'll be honest, this back half of Kiramager is throwing me just as many plot twists as I expected it would. I'm dealing with things as I come to them and repurposing everything as best as I can hoping I'm not throwing away important foreshadowing in the process.
> 
> We're near the end, here, and I'm struggling to predict where things are going while crafting my own ending for this thing. 
> 
> Where does my intent as a Writer collide with the Character's intents? Where does the reader perspective fall on that front? How does all of this balance? 
> 
> \---  
> Mei and Harry are basically in the opposite positions they WOULD be in had Kiramager gone a traditional route with them and not made Harry turn into his own zord. There's something ironic about that.  
> \---  
> The Zombie Bechats... Yeah. That's a thing. Kinda creepy, these guys.  
> \---  
> The next chapter in this act is MSK: 01X25: "Straight as an Arrow. You Carry our Intentions Through the Wind." (Part 2)


	22. MSK: 01X25: "Straight as an Arrow. You Carry our Intentions Through the Wind." (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conclusion. With some inspiration from outside their reality, the Kiramagers unleash a new power to halt Yodonna's plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> The Team takes a beating.  
> Self Destructing Power Up.  
> Picture Embedding and Linkage.  
> Explosions.  
> Some brief Authorial meta.

**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 9TH, 2013.**  
  
Inside it's safely stored box on the Beltus, the Kanaema Stone Destoria pulsed with energy, barely restrained by the glass box around it.

* * *

In an underground parking garrage on Diaspora, the Kiramagers were struggling with the still fresh and at'em Zombie Bechats.  
  
"We have to stop her!" Atsuya called out. "We can't let her destroy this world!" He smacked at and tusled with the Bechat.  
  
Bombowler and 'Yodonna'- the fusion of Escape and Ridley inside the body of Iyo Kodera- stood aside and watched the battle unfold.  
  
"Is that so?" Yodonna asked. "I'd like to see you try."  
  
"Yeah!?" Tomo shouted- pinned to the ground by a Bechat.  
  
"You stand no chance," Yodonna said. "Even as we speak, the Bombowlers are fighting other Ranger Teams across the Universe right now, getting their fancy sparkly suits beaten off of them even as we speak."  
  
Images of the Overdrives getting attacked overwhelmed Tomo's mind for a moment, followed by the Mystics and the ToQgers- Tomo couldn't help it with the way the words were being spoken.  
  
"Damn You!" Tomo broke free, and-- immediately got grappled by the Bechat again.   
  
"Bombowler Jamen," Yodonna said.  
  
"Yes!" The Jamenshi stood to attention.  
  
"Gather your squad, and gather as much darkness energy as you can," she ordered. "Meet me back at the shrine. Terrify, don't kill. It won't matter either way, but we get more darkness energy from fear than death."  
  
"Understood!" The Jamenshi bowed, and headed off.  
  
Garuza stared out from behind a support post- observing, "So, this is what Gilgamesh decided to do with her, huh?"  
  


* * *

  
A pair of muddied boots ran up the staircase to the shrine. A brown cloak blew in the wind.  
  


* * *

  
"I won't let you!" Atsuya slashed at the Bechats, trying to chase after the Jamenshi-- but he, like the rest of his team, got pinned to the ground.  
  
"What should we do?!" Harley shouted.  
  
"We need power!" Atsuya called out, gripping onto his sword as Bechats piled onto him. "Massive Power!"  
  


* * *

  
Destoria pulsed again- the glass around it cracking.  
  


* * *

  
_"When Worlds fall to Devastation," Oladdin narrated, "People must Shine!"_   
  
_"Sparkles, the Proof of Kiramental Warriors who can Change the Future!" he continued._   
  
_"KIRAFUL GO!" He shouted._

[ _MASHIN SENTAI: KIRAMAGER_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffuDLZEVUnY)

* * *

Gigant Driller punched at the monstone with the claw arm.  
  
"When will it burn out already!?" Harry shouted.  
  
The Monstone rammed them in the chest with its head.  
  
Within Drijan's cockpit as everything sparked and shook, Mei looked to her morpher- "Doctor Kae!"  
  
"It should have burnt out already! The Monstone's body is showing signs of internal damage but it's not stopping yet!" Gina replied. "Maybe if you wait just another minute?!"  
  
Another ramming from the Monstone- and Gigant Driller hit the ground- RHAMMMM! The world shook, and Harry groaned- "I don't think we have another minute...!"  
  
The Monstone roared- rushing at them.  
  


* * *

  
Destoria pulsed again- the glass of its case shattering- the stone vanishing from sight.  
  


* * *

  
Atsuya got flung to the floor by Bechats- Nepeta was faring just about as well.  
  
"I don't want to lose to these guys!" Harley begged for a miracle, fighting against the Bechats who formed a line across from her- then grabbed her and flipped her onto her back- "GYAH!"  
  
Equius was dogpiled- and Tomo got kicked into him.  
  
All the Kiramagers went tumbling into a pile and demorphed- lying on the ground.  
  
"This is the end," Yodonna smirked cruelly.  
  


* * *

  
Destoria itself manifested in a Left hand- a Right hand raised into the air.  
  


* * *

  
The Bechats swarmed between Yodonna and the Kiramagers, panting for breath- then they ran forwards.  
  


* * *

  
**_SNAP!_ **   
  


* * *

  
The Bechats shrieked as orange and blue energy surged across their bodies- glitching their appearances horribly as they fought against it.  
  
"What's... happening?" Nepeta asked, not quite sure what to make of it.  
  
"They're in pain?" Equius asked, astonished.  
  
Yodonna sighed. "Awh. The Power-up's side effect already? I thought we had another five minutes still."  
  
The Bechats exploded with a burst of purple smoke- [collapsing into puddled remains of brown muck](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-03.png). 

The Kiramagers stared on in horror.  
  
"Horrible!" Harley gasped.  
  
"You knew about the side effect and did it anyways!?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"I have nothing left to live for but revenge," Yodonna said. "Of course I did it. Soldiers are disposable until this conflict ends. Even my own life is forefit if you manage to beat me before I beat you. I understand that." Her eyes flickered between violet and orange- souls within dueling for control.  
  
"You're mad!" Atsuya gasped.  
  
"But I think I've gotten what I've wanted now," Yodonna said, turning to leave, eyes settling on violet. "I'm done playing with you all for today."  
  
"WAIT!" Tomo shouted. Yodonna froze. "IF you don't finish us off here, you'll regret it," Tomo declared, teeth grit and forcing themself to their feet.   
  
"I sincerely doubt it," Yodonna answered- eyes flickering with traces of orange, but staying violet as she dared to turn around to face them. She looked at Tomo. "I made a decision as the leader. As I see it, I am Good, and you are Not. I'm Very Good. Good at Fighting. Good at Winning. There is no point concerning myself with you any further." A flicker of orange, a snarl that was quickly repressed. Ridley didn't agree with Escape, it seemed.   
  
"What kind of leader just uses up and throws away their allies?" Tomo demanded. They reached a hand towards Atsuya, and declared, "We have a leader we can trust to not throw our lives away." They put their hand on Atsuya's back, and he looked up, a little surprised at the declaration. "Together with our friends, we'll turn this battle around."  
  
"Tomo," Atsuya started. "What are you-?"  
  
"Friends?" Ridley's eyes flared for control. "I HAD friends until you all took them from me." She snarled- but then Escape's violet overtook her again.   
  
"Fine," she stated. "I'll wait and see if you are Good Enough to turn the battle around." She turned and left. "But it will be impossible."  
  
She teleported away with the cawing of a crow.  
  
"We'll definitely show you!" Tomo hissed, and then collapsed.  
  


* * *

  
Our view rewinds back a minute or so, rejoining Harry and Mei as Gigant Driller crashed into the ground.  
  
"I don't think we have another minute...!" Harry said.  
  
The Monstone roared- rushing at them.  
  
The Monstone charged forwards--

_" **STOO** OOooonnn..."_

-And then electricity and energy ruptured all over its body- exploding outwards as the spiraling, circling form of Energia projected itself outwards from within the Monstone.

And then someone's voice shouted through the air:

_**"DESTORIA! PLEASE TRANSMIT THAT DAMAGE TO EVERY ATTACKING MONSTER AT ONCE!!"** _

  
**_SNAP!_ **

Another surge of orange lightning followed along the Monstone's body before a ripple shockwaved out.  
  
"I have no idea what that was..." Harry shouted as he got Driller to its feet.  
  
The stone continued to circle, sparking away violently across the Monstone's body-- and then it shut down with an audible powering down noise.  
  
"Sttoonnn..." it rumbled, slumping forwards- smoke rising from its body.  
  
"But whether the day goes as planned or not," Harry decided- crouching into position- and then he roared forwards- _**"LIFE IS A ONE-TWO PUNCH!!!"**_  
  
The Drill punched through the face of the Monstone- and plowed forwards, Forwards, FORWARDS!!!!   
  
Mei gasped as she watched an energy alert signal flare up- Drijan's systems were captchaloging Energia from within the Monstone and pulling it into a secure storage space.  
  
And then it was done- Harry pulled back with a roar- turning his back to the Monstone as it fell behind him and exploded.

**_KABWOOOOLM!!!_ **

**__CHECKMAGE!__ **

Harry stood there for a moment, triumphant- and then the damage the Monstone had done to Gigant Driller caught up to them and the robot tumbled towards the ground as sparks overwhelmed everything.  
  
Harry's stone form tumbled free, hitting the ground, and shrinking back down into Kiramei Silver.  
  
Mei hopped out of the sparking Drijan, demorphing as she ran over to Harry. "Harry! Are you alright!?"

[Harry threw a fist into the air- a fist clutching the deep blue stone, sparkled with red and gold flecks. ](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-06.png)  
Kanaema Stone- Energia.  
  
 _ **"WONDER GEEEEEEEEEEET!"**_ he shouted, and immediately demorphed.

* * *

Joey Claire's house was where the Kiramagers had fallen back to- and the Alternian woman was frowning as she helped bandage them up.  
  
"You're lucky you got away with your lives!" She said. "I still haven't heard back from Tokoha yet... I don't know-"  
  
"We know," Atsuya winced as Joey placed a bandage over his forehead. "Ow."  
  
"Those Bechats were too strong," Tomo grimaced.

"What do we do about it?" Fiya asked- watching from the other room with the rest of the Kiramei Stones.  
  
"Everything's going bad out there still," Shovellow sighed. "I get the feeling we're not going to be doing much this fight. So many Jamenshi everywhere..."  
  
"Those Bomb Jamen are still out there," Equius said, "Preparing to set off that explosion. We have to stop them."  
  
"But I don't know if we can, as we are right now," Harley said, genuinely afraid. "I haven't felt like this since... since Hircine's invasion."  
  
Joey grimaced, standing up. "I know. And if I had my way I'd be out there fighting with you all. But-"  
  
"We got beat this badly even with the suits protecting us," Nepeta said, quietly. "A civilian'll get hurt even more."  
  
"Everyone," Mabayuine said, hovering into the room. "I know, it's a bad time, but you can't let doubt creep in now. If you do..."  
  
And then the front door barged open, and in came Harry, supported by Mei, as well as one other- a gender neutral figure wearing a brown cloak with orange eyes.  
  
"Harry! Mei!" Atsuya got to his feet- happy to see his teammates.  
  
"We got Energia!" Harry held it out, the stone gleaming in hand.  
  
"That's great and all-" Joey said, eyeing the cloaked figure. "But you again! Just what are you doing here after causing trouble on Christmas-?"  
  
"Sorry, I'm just a traveler," The so called Traveler said, offering a smile. "I happened to be passing by when these two were fighting that Monstone." Then, they pulled something out of their cloak- "Here-" and threw it across the room to Atsuya. "Catch!"  
  
Atsuya caught it- and realized it was Destoria. "How did-?" He looked to the figure there, who just gave a small smile in response, and said:  
  
"Let's worry about that after we get your friend patched up, shall we?"  
  


* * *

  
Everyone stared at Destoria and Energia sitting next to eachother on Claire's dining room table.  
  
"If we power ourselves up with Energia's energy, we can beat them," Tomo thought.  
  
"Absolutely Not!" Atsuya decided instantly, and sharply. "We can't use it!"  
  
"Why not?" Harley asked, begging. "It's our only choice, isn't it?!"  
  
"And if we wind up like those Bechats?!" Atsuya asked, and the room chilled considerably at the memory.  
  
"If it matters any, I've seen outcomes of that fight with the Monstone without the extra interference laid onto it," The Traveler, 'Destoria', chimed in. "Your leader there is right. Over using that stone is sure to lead to destruction for the lot of you just as assuredly as it would those Bechats."  
  
"You sure know a lot about these stones," Joey said, suspiciously eyeing the cloaked figure.   
  
"I won't say how I know it," The Traveler answered, returning Joey's gaze. "But trust me when I say I wouldn't be here if I weren't trying to prevent a greater tragedy."  
  
"What are you, some kind of Seer?" Joey asked.  
  
"Just a Mage," they answered. "Of Light, if it matters."  
  
"Then why--?" Joey tried pressing.  
  
"What they know doesn't matter," Atsuya said. "What I know does. Using that stone... the Stronger Energia gets, the more destructive it is on the body of the one using it. I... I can feel it just looking at it. That stone. It's like it's trying to warn us."   
  
"Energia's not really the sort for projections," The Traveler hummed quietly, nobody paid them any attention, as Atsuya continued.  
  
"Worst-case scenario, we lose our lives fighting to win this one battle," Atsuya continued. "But what about the next fight? Or the fight after that? If ranger teams out there keep getting worn down and taken out of the fight, team after team, ranger after ranger... then-- Then who protects everyone? Giglamesh's people win. We can't allow that to happen!"

He shook his head, reached out and grabbed Energia.

"I need to think about this. Figure out a plan. But until then NOBODY uses this Stone!" Atsuya declared, and then headed outside.

* * *

  
Atsuya sat someways outside the house, gazing up into the trees as he held his sketchpad and Energia up to his chest.  
  
"Pardon the interuption," The Traveler said, approaching him from the direction of the house. "But the ToQGers just returned and are getting patched up, and I didn't feel comfortable being in there with all of that."  
  
Atsuya looked up at the Traveler, and asked, "So... you're a projection of Destoria, right? Or, atleast something pretending to be Destoria?"  
  
"Close enough, yeah," The Traveler nodded. "Like I said, I'm just passing through. Though. I couldn't not do anything with what was going on this time."  
  
They sat down on the ground across from Atsuya, crossing their legs, and orange eyes-- no, they shifted to a pale green as they sat, maybe even a hazel hue. "I thought to maybe prevent things getting this bad by warning you about Ridley, but it just provoked things into a worse fate."  
  
"What could've been better?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"Same play, 'just' with it being a portal to summon an army of Jamenju," the Traveler answered. "'Just.' What a laugh..."  
  
"Can't you just stop things from happening?" Atsuya asked. "Can we use Destoria to stop them entirely?"  
  
"Can't," they shook their head. "Destoria's power is all caught up in that snafu with Ridley's team absorbing June's Team and, eurgh. I'm not meddling more with that. I got punched in the nose once already as it is."  
  
"June mentioned that," Atsuya said, frowning. "...Did you set things in motion to happen the way it did with Runame?"  
  
"Gods no." They flinched at the implications. "By the time the pieces fell together, it was pretty clear there wasn't any other option for how things went. I've been dealing with that myself, since it happened. I'm not happy with that outcome either, but- I literally can't see any other way for it to have happened without it upsetting everything that's come before it."  
  
"And this?" Atsuya asked. "This fight?"  
  
The Traveler eyed him for a long moment, then said, "Let me tell you a story of another King Oladdin. One who lived in the Milky Way, who was allies with an Earth different from either you're aware of."  
  
"Alright," Atsuya nodded.  
  
They closed their eyes, and then spoke.  
  
"There was a shrine in the forest, dedicated to a Phoenix," The Traveler narrated. "Oladdin, searching for the power of relics on Earth, came to that shrine. He was moved by the local Phoenix Legend."  
  


* * *

  
_In a sepia toned... not flash back, but flash sideways, rather, Oladdin held a sign, painted with a Phoenix image._   
  
_"Oh! He gasped. "The Phoenix that grants great power to all who visit this land!" He turned the sign around to show it to a shrine priest wielding a bow over his shoulder. "How Amazing!"_   
  
_The man smiled._   
  


* * *

  
"That sounds like Oladdin, regardless of the world," Atsuya said.   
  
The Traveler chuckled, cracking an eye open. "There are some universal constants the multiverse over, Kiramei Red. Oladdin's one of them, best as I can tell. A little too clever for his own good at times, though." They closed their open eye, and continued. "After absorbing some of the Phoenix's power just by being there, Oladdin challenged the Shrine's owner to a round of archery."

* * *

_The flash-sideways continued, with Oladdin and the shrine priest taking aim with their arrows at nearby targets._   
  
_They unleashed their arrows- striking the targets- neither winning._   
  
_"It's a draw," the man said._   
  
_"Really?" Oladdin asked after a moment's consideration. "Then I will hit both targets with one arrow!" He decided._   
  
_"What?" The man asked._   
  
_But the targets were rearragned, one behind the other._   
  
_Oladdin pulled back on his arrow- "If I succeed, I win!" He declared- and added far too much strength to his pull._   
  
_The Bow snapped from the strain._   
  


* * *

  
"Remind me never to tell Equius this story, by the way," The Traveler quirked open the other eye this time.   
  
Atsuya nodded, understanding part of the reasoning why. "He might get ideas..."  
  


* * *

  
_Oladdin repaired the bow, holding it out for the shrine owner to see. "The bow reached its breaking point, it seems," he said. "Is there no way to surpass the limit?"_   
_And then he tried again._   
  
_"I must not hit the breaking point..." Oladdin pulled backwards, being much more careful with his strength and the tension he put onto the bow. "How's This? I'll add a spin!" He decided._   
  
_He released the arrow- and it spun through the air._   
  
_Through the first target it went, landing firmly in the second behind it._   
  
_"Alright!" The King cheered._   
  


* * *

  
"'Limits are not mean to be surpassed,'" The Traveler quoted. "'I am glad I learned that.' He left happily after that." They opened their eyes, still hazel green. "That's the King's Tale. Tell me, Kiramei Red, what does that story give you?"  
  
"Limits are not meant to be surpassed..." Atsuya considered it...  
  
And as it should have, inspiration was sparked.  
  
"I see," he looked towards Energia in hand. "That'll work then!" He stood up. "I need to get to Atlantis! I need the Bow Weapon Archer and Lilly have been working on!"  
  
The Traveler stood, smiling, "Well, that's a twist on it, isn't it? I'll let your teammates know where you've gone."  
  
They turned to head back inside.  
  
"Wait," Atsuya began. "What about you? What limits do you have here? if you're even just borrowing Destoria's power..."  
  
"Even I have limits I refuse to surpass," The Traveler said, looking back over their shoulder. "And those limits generally only bend- but not break- when it comes to mistakes I'm cleaning up after myself for. You have your answer already, Astuya Jurul. This time for sure, you won't be seeing me again until the end, baring that exception."  
  
"But what about the rest of the Ranger teams?" Atsuya asked.  
  
"They'll be fine," The Traveler said. "Destoria's powers ensured that all your enemies took that damage at the same time, where needed. Your fellow Rangers... May be a bit out of sorts and needing a long vacation, but they'll be fine... as long as you make it to Atlantis in time." They turned fully to face him, and said. "Alright. One last cheat to hurry things along, then. Brace yourself."  
  
They raised their right hand, and Atsuya braced himself.  
  
"Good luck." They Snapped their fingers, and Astuya was Linked away to Atlantis.  
  


* * *

  
Atsuya arrived in the lab that housed the half-finished bow of Blue Diamond Kiramei Stone.  
  
Nobody was present, everyone who should have been there was busy with the all hands on deck situation the universe was presently facing.  
  
He grabbed the Bow's fragments, arranged them how he wanted... then grabbed what looked like parts for another Kiramei Changer off of a shelf, adding them to the mix, and then he focused on the image in his mind.  
  
 _"Energia, please, give us this bow!"_  
  
The Kanaema Stone transformed the Kiramei Stone fragments with a pulse of energy- Energia itself turned Dark, but the bow...  
  
[ _Oh. The Bow came to life._](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-08.png)

With a Caw and a shriek of light- it announced itself with Oladdin's voice- the same voice on their Morphers and swords.   
  
_**_"KIRAFUL-GO ARROW!"_**_  
  
Atsuya grabbed the bow. "I have it!"  
  
And then, even though he knew that he shouldn't be heard, he still was, and he was linked away a moment later, returning back to Diaspora, returning back to his team.  
  
Returning to the fight with something that would turn the tides of battle.  
  
The Traveler, of course, was already gone when he got back, their role in this adventure finished for the time being.  
  


* * *

  
Yodonna waited in a field near the shrine for five Bombowler Jamenshi to arrive, [each marked different from eachother by the fire themed number stickers plastered to their heads](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-02.png).

"Lady Yodonna," #1 said, stepping forwards. "We have condensed darkness energy from across the universe into these five special bombs!"  
  
"Good," Yodonna said, readying her morpher's scanner function. It swept a beam of energy across the landscape, then projected a hologram of where best to place the explosives.  
  
"Here," She said, "we will plant them at these five locations to generate the detonation."  
  
"We won't let that happen!" Tomo's voice interjected, and Yodonna sighed.  
  
She turned to look, seeing the six Kiramagers running up, morphed. She couldn't help it, winded as they looked, she laughed.  
  
"What's so funny!?" Tomo demanded.  
  
"Nothing," Yodonna said, ceasing her laugh immediately. "I just thought I'd practice for my victory."  
  
"Your wish hasn't come true yet!" Tomo declared.  
  
"Look at the state you're all in," Yodonna said, eyeing how they huffed, puffed, and fought for air, looking weak and easy to beat. "What can you do?"  
  
"More than you think," Atsuya said. "We'll revive like phoenixes!!"  
  
"Huh?" Yodonna asked.  
  
Atsuya tapped his morpher. "Come on, Kiraful!"  
  
 ** __"KIRAFUL GO ARROW!"__** it announced- the bow decaptchaloging and swooping through the air before [landing in Atsuya's hands](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-09.png).

"What are you going to do with a tiny toy like that?" Yodonna asked.  
  
"Just you wait and see," Atsuya said, holding the bow up.  
  


* * *

  
_"We'll power up with this," Atsuya said, holding the bow up in flash back._   
  
_"What about the side effects?" Equius asked._   
  
_"We won't cross the limit," Atsuya said. "We'll only stay in that state for 100 seconds."_   
  
_"I don't really get it," Harley said, "why that number or why not. But... Okay." She nodded._

* * *

[The five Jamenshi grabbed their bombs, preparing to run.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-11.png)  
  
Zombied Bechats came sliming out of the nearby tree line-- Harry ran forwards and intercepted them.

"GO!" He declared. "I'll hold them off!"  
  
"Thanks!" Atsuya held up the bow, and reached for the circles. "Here we go!"  
  
 _ **_"KIRAFUL GO!"_**_ it shouted, and began playing out a loud, rockin' tune of music.  
  
Atsuya aimed upwards as his team fell into formation around him. **_"KIRAFUL CHANGE!"_**  
  
The single shot was released- flying upwards, before splitting into five prismatic beams and shooting down upon the respective Kiramager.  
  
Energy rammped up across the five of them- their Kiramental powers surging to hights they'd never felt before- glowing armor formed over their bodies, each chest plate emblemized with the appearance of a phoenix.

_**_"IT'S SO DAZZLING!"_** _

Crystals leaning to the left- crystals leaning to the right- framing Atsuya in the center.   
  
"GO!" Yodonna ordered- and the Jamenshi ran off in different directions to complete their plan.  
  
"GO KIRAMAGERS!" The team struck their new poses, "GO!"

The caw of a phoenix echoed through the air as flames burst around them- and the Kiramagers ran into battle as a 100 second timer began to count down.  
  
Bechats went for Atsuya, as he held onto the bow- "NEPETA!" He threw the bow- and Nepeta caught it as she attacked a Bechat with a leg tackle.  
  
Then, using that poor Bechat as a stand, she opened fire on the first of the Jamenshi.  
  
"NO! NO! NOT MEEE!" Number Five cried in a whining voice.  
  
"Strike for you!"[ Nepeta said, releasing the shot](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-13.png).

The Jamenshi turned around at the wrong second, and took the arrow through his side.  
  
 _ **BOOM!**_ Five was down.  
  
Nepeta eyed the next Jamenshi hiking through the forest- then the Bechat she was over got out from under her, and as she tackled it- Equius blew by, grabbing the bow.  
  
"My Turn Next!" He said, leaping past the bechats, and flinging himself into the next Jamenshi's path- 77 Seconds remaining.  
  
Number Four saw it coming as Equius powered up the bow's next shot, and he hid behind a tree.  
  
"UNSTOPPABLE LASER!!!" Equius shouted, and released the shot.  
  
None of the trees inbetween Equius and the Jamenshi stood a shot of resisting that shot.  
  
Number Four exploded on the spot.  
  
"GO!" Equius threw the bow into the air- and it took off, flying for the next Kiramager.  
  
Harley was chasing after the next Jamenshi and the Kiraful Go Arrow caught up to her. She grabbed it, and tele-shot forwards like a rocket past Number Three, blowing him over.  
  
She skid to a halt, and took aim- "Let's GO!" She shouted, firing off a fast and loose shot.  
  
The Jamenshi dodged.  
  
BOOM, explosion behind.  
  
"Doi! Aim first, Harley!" She said- feeling very overly excited due to the way her powers were interacting with the Kanemastone's power.  
  
She tried again- and again- and again and again and again- [Until finally one of the shots hit Number Three, and he exploded](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-14.png).

"YAY!" Harley cheered, thrusting the bow into the air at 38 seconds left.  
  
"GOTTA GO FAST!" Atsuya declared- rushing by, snatching the bow, darting through the trees, and chasing the next Jamenshi through the trees into a clearing.  
  
He tapped the bow- _**_"KIRAFUL CHARGE!"_**_ \- 28 seconds remaining.  
  
Atsuya took aim at the Jamenshi that was further ahead of him. _**"SPARKLING PHOENIX!"**_

[The burst of energy shaped like a burning phoenix shot through the air, and rained down on the next Jamenshi-](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-15.png) whose number couldn't be seen before he exploded atop a cliff.  
  
 _ **_"CHECKMAGE PERFECT!"_**_  
  
"FINISH IT, TOMO!" Atsuya tossed the bow- 15 seconds left.  
  
Tomo was shooting in the forest at the last Jamenshi as they caught the bow.   
  
"This is the end!" Tomo took aim- sharp shooting skills locking on fast.  
  
7 Seconds.  
  
Bombowler Jamenshi Number 2 flinched backwards- "Crap crap crap crap!!" - and the arrow glowed brightly, ready to--  
  
Yodonna smashed into Tomo's armor with her riding crop, sending the Go Kiramager tumbling to the ground and fouling the shot.  
  
A flash of light later, and the transformation fell away.  
  
"Too bad," Yodonna said. "Looks like you couldn't finish the job!"  
  
The other Kiramagers powered down to their normal forms as well.  
  
Yodonna laughed like mad- and the Jamenshi took that as his cue to leave on for his destination with his bomb.  
  
Tomo watched this, watched the Jamenshi leave, and chuckled. "Too bad for you, Yodonna."  
  
"What's that?" Yodonna turned towards Tomo.  
  
"You forgot we have friends," Tomo answered.  
  
"Friends? Really?" Ridley's orange eye glow returned. She snarled. "You're going to taunt me with--!"  
  
She stopped.  
  
Escpae's purple eyes overcame, and she counted out, "One, two, three, four, five...."  
  


* * *

The Jamenshi ran through the forest, before coming to a halt, as he saw Harry standing between two trees- legs doing the splits as support- as Shiny Breaker was leveled towards him with deadly precision. "Wonder Obstacle!" 

Shiny Breaker chanted: _**_"ONE BEAM CHARGE! Glad to Do It! GO GO GO!"_**_  
  
"NO WAY!" The Jamenshi squealed in terror.  
  
["Twinkle Twinkle, Little Silver!!" Harry declared- and fired off the shot.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-17.png)

The Jamenshi exploded as the energy drill punched through him.  
  
 _ **_"ONE JOB DONE!"_**_  
  
Harry leaped to the ground, and fetched the bomb under arm. "There we go!"  
  
"And six," Tomo said, finishing the count as the Kiramagers regrouped, all six of them. "Thanks, Harry."  
  
"Glad to Do it," Harry said, quoting his Shiny Breaker with amusement.  
  
"See that?" Tomo turned to Yodonna, throwing their arms out. "We beat your game!" Their arms fell down to their side. "Your scheme has fallen apart, and there's nothing for you to laugh about anymore. Your revenge is foiled, too."  
  
"You Damned Heros!" Yodonna snarled- eyes flaring orange before she teleported away in a flury of crow feathers.  
  
Atsuya stepped forwards and put a hand on Tomo's shoulder in silent support.

* * *

Inside the flooded SGC, Yodonna stomped through the waters, not quite sure of the defeat just handed to her. She was, pardon the pub, of two minds of the matter. Escape conceding that they were indeed good enough to turn the fight around, and Ridley raging at the defeat of her revenge plot.  
  
"Yodonna," Garuza said, stepping out from behind a pillar. "I like the way you fight."  
  
She stopped, eyes glowing orange. "Are you being sarcastic? I lost, again." She turned to face Garuza.  
  
"No," Garuza said, approaching her, [and then deliberately walked by her just enough that she could turn her back to him when he stopped.](https://axrosspaceandtime.files.wordpress.com/2020/11/kiramage25-19.png) "It was your greatness that forced the Kiramagers to bring out that troubling mode in desperation." 

"Really?" She asked. "So you approve?"  
  
"I do," Garuza said. "With Enter dead, and, well, I haven't seen that Lothor anywhere since your rebirth, either. You seem to lack allies willing to work with you at the moment. Our forces are dwindled, and you bloodied the Rangers something fierce as a whole with this scheme of yours, using Kurantula's monsters."  
  
He turned to face her, though she had her back to him. "What do you say to the idea of joining forces with me?"  
  
She considered it, and then said, "Very well."   
  
Garuza chuckled as she turned to face him.  
  
"It sounds fun," Yodonna's eyes pulsed purple.  
  


* * *

  
On the Beltus, Destoria was put back into a newly made glass case that now housed Reversia and Energia as well.   
  
"There," Atsuya said, smiling at the stones. "Everything's back where it belongs now."  
  
He headed out of the storage room back into the Lounge, where everyone was sitting around sipping on drinks and lounging around, looking battered to hell, but otherwise alive and intact.  
  
"What's the final damage report look like?" Okurii was asking Gina, sitting in a chair with Nepeta and Carry curled up and leaning against her.   
  
"A few teams are requesting early 'retirement' to emergency deployment only after the beating they took today," Gina said, "but considering the amount of Generals we've killed in recent days, the fact that they're asking to be retired instead of being forcibly retired says a lot about how we've fared. No loss of life, miraculously.... Bizarrely, even. There's something strange about that."  
  
"I'll take that as the blessing it is," Okurii said, raising a glass to the air in toast, and then throwing it back.  
  
"I'm just wondering how the hell you got to Atlantis and back, Atsuya," Gina said, turning to face the boy as he took a seat next to a half-asleep Harry. "Aside from Yeesha or the Bahro, remote pinpoint linking someone like that is pretty rare."  
  
"I think... that's a matter for other people to figure out," Atsuya said, smiling. "If things ever get out of hand and we can't manage, I'm sure that person will show up again."  
  
 _Wait, what?_  
  
"What makes you say that?" Gina asked. "From what you told me they didn't sound like they intended to interfere again."  
  
Hey, yeah, that's right! _What are you saying, Atsuya!?_  
  
Atsuya just grinned. "They're cleaning up their own mess if it gets out of hand. Someone with that kind of responsibility weighing on them won't just stand by if they get a chance to make a difference again."  
  
Hey! I don't intend to let things GET that bad in the future! What are you saying here!?  
  
Atsuya didn't respond, even as the meta narrative prompted him, and even as his teammates and friends and supervisors nagged him to elaborate. He just smiled, and said, "I'll trust them just like I'll trust Oladdin to have our back when the moment's right."  
  
 _ **...Gaaahhhhh.** _Astuya, you...! _I don't want to hear that from you!!!_  
  


* * *

  
 ** _KIRAFUL! MIRACLE!! KIRAMAGER!!!_**  
  
Dirk patted the Traveler on the shoulder as they sobbed- "Why does that boy have so much faith in people!? I'm ending this meta arc with this act anyways!"  
  
"Welcome to the problems of becoming a face to someone like that boy," Dirk said, "rather than just a faceless narrator. You get your character pegged in a heartbeat."  
  
"Why would he say that though!?" The Traveler exclaimed, crying out.  
  
Dirk just offered the Audience a well knowing, tired look. "You see what I have to deal with here?"  
  


* * *

  
 ** _NEXT KIRAMAGER!_**  
  
"Welcome to your new personal Hell, Rangers!" A jamenshi shouted.  
  
"Let's Go with Full Spirit!!!" Harley shouted.  
  
"JUNGLE BEAST: SPIRIT UNLEASHED!" an unknown team shouted.  
  
"KIRAMEI CHANGE!" Harley, Tomo, and Harry called out.   
  
**Next Episode: 26: Fury of the Jungle (Glued to the Edge of my Seat!)**  
  
"Let's sparkle next time, as well!" Mahha called out.  
  


* * *

**End of (Act 8) Act 3.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason I went with the self insert meddling here at the end of this act was three fold:  
> 1: I had to fix a broken plot point- the flash back- due to the way that this timeline's backstory was set up for the various characters. This Oladdin flash back is just so random and Deus ex machina to begin with... I struggled with a way to make it work in the context of the story. It's not a perfect solution, though.  
> 2: Everything to do with Runamei.  
> 3: I'm done with leaving the various worlds in this galaxy to suffer hundreds upon hundreds of deaths per episode like was happening during the Stargate side of things. I took advantage of the situation to intervene before any lives were lost beyond the monsters. Is it unrealistic considering the past writing of this universe? A little, I suppose. 
> 
> ...Whether or not that's really the end of the meta stuff or not is a matter up to debate given the next act's completely different meta nature compared to this act's meta nature. We're entering Crossover Territory the next act. Beyond the very nature of crossover already inherent in Stargate Alternia, I mean. If you've been paying attention elsewhere you'll probably have noticed some of my other recent uploads have referenced some future events in the next act. 
> 
> On the self insert: If I'd been in a different state of mind while writing this, the self insert would probably have been flat out replaced by a Destoria projection to begin with. That said, it wouldn't have conveyed the themes of taking responsibility any better, I feel. This whole act was about Mistakes, and their consequences... and I didn't want to properly personify another Kiramei Stone that doesn't have a voice in canon... not when they're part of a set. And not when doing so would require me to do all of the stones and... I just don't have time for that. 
> 
> That said, I am definitely restraining my self insert to the SG:Alternia timeline as far as appearances go. Out of every universe I've written for, this is the one I think I'd feel most at home in. And once things settle down... no need for authorial meddling, that's for sure. 
> 
> I feel that's carried through here to the end, at any rate.  
> \---
> 
> The Kiraful Go Arrow is an interesting piece of tech. The 100 second time limit is... bizarre to say the least. And while the lesson that canon imparts- that some limits are not meant to be surpassed- is one I can also apply on a Meta Level... There's a strange thing to be considered regarding that, especially since when used in-mecha the 100 second thing... doesn't seem to count?? It's utterly bizarre. 
> 
> \---
> 
> I feel like Yodonna's characterization is all over the place. I'm balancing her canonical actions with Ridley's and Escape's souls added into the mix. I'll give her some slack this early on because she's basically just freshly fused together and things aren't gelled properly yet. We'll see how that shakes out going forwards. But... to answer a comment in a review I'm still debating allowing through review... it's not a matter of a single heart for this girl. It's a matter of three different identities mixing together in this story in a way that's... pretty unstable. 
> 
> It's not fun for anybody involved, here. 
> 
> The matter of souls and reincarnation and memories is all something I keep coming back to in these stories, it feels like. I'm not sure what this mess of a situation has to say on the matter, yet. 
> 
> \---
> 
> The last chapter of this act is: INTERMISSION: The Reach Moon's Sparkle.
> 
> I'll... probably hold off until Monday for uploading that. 
> 
> Merry Christmas, all, if you celebrate it, and if you don't, I hope you have a good day. :)
> 
> ...Let's hope 2021 is a better year.


	23. INTERMISSION: The Reach Moon's Sparkle.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mei performs a System Restore from Backup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW:  
> Nerves and Anxiety before a complicated soul mending procedure.  
> Second person perspective.  
> Restoration of Self.  
> Body Euphoria.

**EARTH DATE: JANUARY 12TH, 2013.**  
  
The Saturday after that massive battle was otherwise quiet, and out of the way.  
  
In the quiet, undisturbed peace of Harley Sheppard's Private Relto age, the Kiramagers and Go-Busters were gathered.  
  
The Kiramei Stones floated around the island, or were perched on whatever nearest surface was available.   
  
Mabushiina steeled herself while checking over the transplantation lenses- which had been painstakingly captchalogued, piece by piece, and moved here to Harley's Relto.  
  
The thought to use this specific Relto, which had at a time also been Hircine's Relto, was thought of to tie it all back to the simple origin root of Runame's life itself, but also had its practicalities to it.  
  
Returning to the Reach was not an option at this time. Doing this anywhere else in the known Galaxy was not an option at this time. For what needed to be done, neither option felt safe enough.   
  
With wounds still healing, it was time for a shattered soul to be mended in the solitude of an Age that reflected a person's very soul.  
  
And while Harley Sheppard was definitely a different person from the Jade Harley who had become Hircine, they'd still shared this Relto for a time. They'd still cohabitated this place. Worked with each other, and around each other- and had their time together here.  
  
And thus the choice was really simple and easy to make.  
  
Going through with it, on the other hand...  
  
Behind the closed doors of the Relto Hut, the Go-Busters were gathered, all dressed similarly to one another.  
  
You are Mei.  
  
"I'm suddenly feeling all kinds of nervous," you say, fidgeting with the hem of the wild leathers and furs you're wearing that evoke the same styles of the Reach- though this particular outfit was sourced from Athosian hunters. "What if I forget who I've become when this is over?"  
  
"Then we'll help you remember," Hiromu said, kneeling down and putting a hand on your exposed left shoulder. You can feel the warmth of his skin against your crystalline shell. It was strange only in that the texture on your right shoulder was weighted fur and leather.   
  
"You're our teammate, and our friend, Mei," Ryujii said, smiling to your. "That won't be lost so easily."  
  
"But what if something else goes wrong?" you ask.   
  
Youko reached down and grabbed your hands, smiling, "It won't. It'll be alright! Smile, Smile!"  
  
"...I don't have a mouth right now," You remind her.  
  
"But you will!" Youko said. "So when you have it, Smile!"  
  
You can't argue with that logic. You lookto J, standing by the door. He just gave a nod, and said, "We'll be with you every step of the way."  
  
And so you all headed outside a minute later.

The Kiramagers stood around the center of the island in a circle- forming a wall around where the large machine had been assembled- wearing simple dress-grade clothing for the core five of them, marking a specific, stark contrast with Harry, whose clothing was more Reach like in the design.  
  
The distinction was important. This was a matter of reassembling a soul, here. You remind yourself- your own soul. Harry held a fragment, Hiromu, Ryujii, and Youko held tiny fragments, you hold a fragment.  
  
All of those fragments needed to be put back into the singular body right here that you are in right now.  
  
J stood off to the side, filling in Harry's spot among the Kiramagers.  
  
"If you're ready, Mei?" Mabushiina asked- she, too, was foregoing her usual outfit. It was very Reach Like- infact, you are suddenly quite sure Mabushiina had specifically gone to the Reach to get that outfit entirely. It was a Shaman's outfit- a wise woman's outfit- the kind of fleecy, fancy sort of painted dress that looked way out of place on the Crystalian girl's sparkling blue skin.  
  
But she was the rites master of this ceremony. It was only fitting that she wore the dress matching the part.  
  
You feel like your nerves are on fire but you have no way to stabilize them. Breathing didn't do anything here.  
  
So you forced the nerves down, and looked over the Kiramagers.   
  
Little Carry stood between Atsuya and Nepeta, wearing a bright yellow sun dress as she held hands with her parents- Nepeta in a sleeveless light pink-and-blue dress, Atsuya in something distinctly Athosian Fancy Wear.  
  
Carry's eyes match yours in that moment, and you realize you'll probably be so much more like that girl in a few moments. Once your 'sense of self' is restored you should be able to morph your Kiramei Stone body past this blank slate appearance you've had all this time and... And...  
  
And be Runame again.  
  
You look to Mabushiina, and say, "I'm ready."  
  
And so the team surround you- you face North, towards the mountain and the hut, and Harry faces South towards you. Hiromu is to your immediate West, Youko to the South, and Ryujii to the East, they all face inwards towards you.  
  
The machine lights up above you, spinning and circling into life.  
  
And suddenly you SENSE all the Kiramei Stone Around You. The tiny shards around your teammates- the fragments of soul they contain within, now releasing those fragments towards you, and--  
  
_\---Kamare giving you a hug on your sixth birthday--_  
  
_\--Mother smiling at you as you gave her your grades from the Alchemy and Enchanting Exams--_  
  
_\--Memories Flood Back into you one after another- like puzzle pieces slotting into place. Voids you've been poking at are filled with context and emotion._  
_Harry's shards of stone release their soul fragments next- and there's a lot here. A Lot that he was carrying of you for you to receive in this moment without even knowing it._  
  
_\---The dreams you had of the battles they were having--_  
  
_\---Their Arrival to Karthwasten--_  
  
_\---You feel your heart beating like mad as your eyes lock with Harry's, and is that the soul resonance talking or is that an actual burgeoning crush from all of the times you've accidentally peeked into his life that---_  
  
It almost overwhelms you as the light and the energy swirls around you, but it's jumbled somehow almost as if there's something missing that- No, wait sparkles of light and information gathering and twisting and combining back together into cohesive wholes that---

Y _ou stand there in Zabyun's cockpit as Harry drives you back to Karthwasten._  
  
_"...Harry?" You ask after a moment, holding the blue chunk of stone in your arms._  
  
_"Yeah?" He asks, looking back towards you._  
  
_"...Are they going to be alright?" You ask._  
  
_He nods. "They're tough. And more than that, those Stones owe that bastard a bit of revenge."_  
  
_"I see." You look out the view screen, and see the world of the Reach blowing by beneath you at wild speeds._  
  
_You can feel the inevitability of the future drawing towards you._  
  
_You're not going to see the next Sunset over the Reach, let alone its next Sunrise._  
  
_"Can I be so bold as to ask you a favor?" You ask._  
  
_"Uh... depends on the favor?" Harry answered._  
  
_You place the stone on the floor, and move to stand in front of Harry, looking down at him._  
  
_"Take off your helmet first? So I can see your face when I ask?" You ask, and he does so. It lies of the floor a moment later, and you take a moment to steel your nerves. "Would... would you..." You take a breath to stabilize. "Have you ever been kissed before?"_  
  
_Harry was surprised, then barked out a laugh. "Mei asked me that not too long ago." He checked Zabyun's controls, and then stood. "Are... you asking me if I'd kiss you?"_  
  
_You nod. "I... I'd like to know what it feels like. I've never... not even my parents have given me even a kiss to my forehead. I don't know and I'd--- If it's not too much to ask for."_  
  
_He pulls you in close, his hands brush against the side of your face- you can feel the echo of your soul shard in his body resonating with your own soul._  
  
_A moment of resonance- showing how everything is supposed to be pieced together properly._  
  
_His lips press to yours, and_ \---

A BACKUP!

You'd imprinted a snapshot of your whole identity onto the fragment of your soul stuck within Harry's Kiramei Stone to show it how everything fit together on reassembly and hadn't even realized it.

Or, well, not your waking self who'd done the kiss, or the you who was now becoming aware of how all the gears were aligning and the puzzle pieces were slotting together. No, the piece of you inside that stone had taken the initiative to create- in essence- a backup of how your very core essence of self was originally put together!

**_And then you Transform._ **

A chime of a bell, a glimmer of light- image given form and-!

You take in a sharp breath as you feel the wind blowing through your hair- your HAIR- and you feel your jaw opening as you take in a deep breath- your lungs expanding- your nose twitching from use.  
  
Your eyes open and you nearly close them again from how bright everything is. Bright BRIGHT. LIGHT. Hitting your eyes and not crystal taking in and---  
  
And you feel ALIVE.

Yes, your body is still made of Kiramei Stone but you feel as close to your self as you have in- in-- in a span of time you can't even properly MEASURE.  
  
And.... And.......  
  
You are still Mei.   
  
Yes, you are whole- you remember being Runame- you know that life now like the back of your own hand as a precursor to who you are now.  
  
But.

You are still Mei.  
  
Your fears are eased as the machine powers down, and you stare at your hands of flesh, and your hair of silver-blonde strands and not silver-grey stone.   
  
You're given a mirror to look into, and you see your face gazing back at you.  
  
Your face.  
  
You smile- you cry with joy- and you feel your heart, crystal as it is, pounding with elation and structure that was once missing.  
  
You look up at Harry and throw yourself at him, hugging him tightly, and thanking him for carrying a piece of you this far.   
  
Then you hug your teammates, and thank them for the same.  
  
You are happy, and excited, and it doesn't even matter if your clothes are a little bit loose now around the shoulders and hips because that's you. You remember these proportions from how you were before.  
  
You are Runame of Karthwasten.  
  
You are Stag Buster, the Silver of the Go-Busters.  
  
And you are Mei.  
  
Despite everything, it's still you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah all that kiss build up was all about creating a soul resonance moment so that Mei's soul could get a grasp of how her soul pieced together. Think of it like an indexing directory program. The fragment in Harry took a snapshot of how a 'complete' Runame's soul looked- all the directory file names and path settings and all of that jazz...
> 
> So that when restoration came, it was able to just slot everything together into place without disturbing the core of Mei that had formed without that directory. 
> 
> Splintered Soul? Mended. 
> 
> And that's one more plot mistake smoothed over and rectified. 
> 
> And that's the End of the chapters for this act. That's right. We finished Act 8 Act 3. Coming up next within the next few hours is the first chapter of Act 8 Act 4, just to get that sorted out while I'm in the mood for it and not putting it off until way later in the week. Hah. 
> 
> We're nearing the finish line now, folks.  
> \---
> 
> Oh, one final thing I think I've forgotten to mention about Runame's name. It's Reach+Luna+Kiramei. As in, The Reach's version of Luna Lovegood + Kiramei Stone Mei. Real soul fusion of a name there. You can tell where in the process of writing this I started writing that recent Myst/Harry Potter fic focusing on Luna Lovegood, probably. XP


End file.
